Obito's Excellent Adventure
by William de Worde
Summary: Obito Uchiha was supposed to die a hero's death. But desperation and dimension warping doujutsu were never meant to be combined, and the results send him somewhere- or somewhen- he didn't expect. The Sandaime finds a solution to two of his problems, and Naruto Uzumaki gains an older brother. [A time travel fic]
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Obito's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

**Rating: **T

**Summary: ** Obito befriends his asshole of a teammate, saves the girl he loves, and sacrifices himself for his team. But instead of getting smooshed under a few tons of solid rock, he finds himself nine years in the future, in the midst of the Uchiha Massacre.

* * *

Obito Uchiha was, all in all, a good person. He helped old ladies cross the street, was polite to his elders, and was loyal to his village and his friends. So maybe he kind-of-maybe had a grudge against his silver-haired, arrogant bastard of a teammate. But in his defense, Kakashi _was_ an asshole- and they had already put an end to their enmity, anyways.

He had died a hero's death and saved his teammate's life. So why the hell was he spending his afterlife getting stabbed at by a psycho Uchiha in an ANBU uniform? He'd been expecting… well, he didn't know, really, but he was sure he would be getting something better than _this_.

_This really _is _the worst day in my life_, Obito thought glumly.

* * *

It had started out so well, too.

* * *

That morning, he had woken up to the blinding sun, exhausted and strangely excited at the same time. He hadn't slept much the previous night, as he had stayed up and talked to Minato-sensei- and Obito had gained a better insight into the mind of his asshole of a teammate.

Kakashi's father had committed seppuku after a mission gone wrong- after Sakumo Hatake had given up the mission for the lives of his teammates. And six year old Kakashi had been the one to find his body.

_That_ must have been _really_ traumatic, and knowing about it helped Obito understand why his teammate always seemed to have a ten foot pole up his ass when it came to the rules of shinobi.

He understood, but didn't agree. But even so, he really felt like he should give his teammate a chance. Hell, maybe one day they could become friends!

Hah. As if. But that was still a nice thought.

* * *

Obito gritted his teeth. He didn't _want_ to say it, even if the bastard _was_ his commanding officer. The way his teammate was looking at him just made him want to pop him a good one.

But he wanted to make peace, didn't he? So that meant he had to extend the olive branch. He shouldn't expect _Kakashi_ to do it, after all. The jerk would probably take off his mask before he would admit that he was wrong.

"Let's go… commander." He said grudgingly, a scowl on his face.

Rin stared at him with wide eyes. Kakashi- or what he could tell, anyways, with that freaking mask covering half of his damn face- stared at him like Obito had stripped naked and had started doing pirouettes. Minato-sensei, on the other hand, smiled at him proudly- okay, fine, he looked surprised too, at first.

Really, was it that out of character for him? …No, actually, don't answer that.

* * *

The mission had gone strangely well. The way Sensei described it, Obito had been expecting enemy nin coming at them from ever direction- but he hadn't seen a single Iwa nin yet. Were they in the wrong place? He _was_ pretty sure about his map-reading skills, but who knows.

Then Kakashi had raised up a hand in warning and the shit really hit the fan.

He heard a whoosh of air and whirled around, only to see a bunch of _very_ sharp wooden stakes flying at him and his team. Obito stared for a moment. _Those_ weren't there before. Then his instincts, borne from all those hours of sparring and training, came into play, and his fingers flashed into seals forming his clan's signature technique.

Fire Release! Great Fireball!

The danger was reduced to ash in a sudden, intense burst of flames. The Uchiha took a few seconds to silently congratulate himself. He had been so proud that day when he finally figured out the technique and had blown the flames across the lake- not wanting to catch anything on fire- but he had never really had the chance to use it in combat.

But now he did, and _boy_, was it _badass_. He snuck a look at Kakashi, hoping to see the jerk's mouth open in shock and awe. Let's see who's the crybaby now? But his face fell when he realized that his teammate was already diving at an enemy nin, forcing the man back with several expertly thrown kunai.

Yeah, _no_. Not wanting to be shown up, Obito followed. The two worked pretty well, actually. They complemented each other's moves, striking when the other distracted their victim. That was until he heard a loud, _very_ familiar scream.

He spun around, ignoring the enemy ninja he had been fighting, and looked in horror as _another_ Iwa nin picked up Rin's prone body and grinned at him with crooked teeth. An one fingered salute- and the man was gone, along with the one he had been fighting- and to Obito's horror, they took Rin with them.

No. _ No. _Nononono_nonono_- He ran forward, not really caring where he went. But he had to find Rin, and in order to find Rin, he had to find the enemy nin that took her. His face tensed with concentration and-

"Obito." A low voice said from behind him, and his back straightened out of his control. "Don't go after them."

Kakashi. But he didn't understand- if they let the enemy nin get away-_  
_

"Not go after- What are you talking about? They took Rin!" He demanded angrily, whirling around to glare at his teammate.

"Easy. We'll continue the mission." The silver-haired boy shrugged nonchalantly. "They won't kill Rin. Not immediately, anyways. But _our_ success rate will drop dramatically if we waste the time to go after them, and that's just something I can't-"

His hands clenched at his sides, turning a bloodless white. He had been angry at Kakashi before, but this- _this_-

"Bull_shit_." Obito growled. "You're going to just- to just _throw_ her _away_, just for your precious mission? Rin saved your life. She saved _all_ of our lives, and you would be dead ten times over without her. Hell, if _you_ were the one who was kidnapped, we wouldn't even hesitate to come after you!"

"But I wasn't." The bastard said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. "Even an idiot like you should understand. It's Rin's duty."

Holy _crap_, he _didn't_.

Obito couldn't help himself. He knew he was breaking several incredibly important shinobi rules by doing so, and he could possibly be court martialed for attacking a superior officer, but to hell with it. All he cared about was Rin, who might be tortured _right now_- and Kakashi's smug face.

He punched the arrogant asshole right in the jaw. His knuckles kinda hurt afterwards, but it was totally worth it. In fact, he had dreamed about it more than a few times- and it felt just as good as he had imagined. To hell with the bastard Kakashi and his precious shinobi rules!

They shouted at each other some more, but Obito didn't have the time to argue. _Rin_ didn't have time right now. The Iwa nin could kill her at any moment! He had to go help her.

_Now._

"I believe..." He said finally, "that the 'White Fang' was a true hero."

Kakashi stared at him with wide eyes.

"You've always said that those in the ninja world who break rules and regulations are called trash..." He swallowed his tears, trying valiantly to stop the burning sensation in his eyes. Obito wasn't gonna let Kakashi see him cry, dammit- especially not now!

"But those who don't care about their companions are even worse trash. And if doing what I'm going to do makes me trash, well, I'll break the rules! If protecting my teammates is not part of being a true shinobi, then I will _crush_ that idea of a shinobi!"

Kakashi had a stricken look on his face. Good. Maybe he actually had feelings. But Obito didn't care about that, not right now. He shot his teammate one last disgusted look and turned his back on him, deliberately walking slowly. But Kakashi didn't try to stop him.

_Rin!_ He swore to himself,_ I'll save you, no matter what!_

* * *

That was actually... not that hard. Who knew walking in a random direction would lead you to your enemy's secret hideout? Obito sure didn't, but he was glad that it worked out. It had been surprisingly easy to find where the Iwa nin had taken Rin.

Maybe they just couldn't measure to his superior Uchiha intellect! He grinned to himself, unaware of the eyes watching him from the darkness. Even though Obito had just fallen into an ambush just a few hours earlier, it didn't occur to him that this might be yet another trap. After all, it probably wasn't a good idea to fight Rock nin in a _cave_.

But the Uchiha remained oblivious. He crouched over Rin's form, mentally preparing himself.

He could see it now- Rin waking up, her beautiful brown eyes looking at him with adoration- _Thank you so much for saving me!_ The imaginary Rin seemed to whisper to a slowly blushing Obito, _Let me reward my hero with a kiss~_

"Eh.. hehe..." He grinned stupidly to himself. "Come on Rin, let's go." He reached out a hand to shake Rin awake, and that was when he heard it.

"Go where?" An amused voice said from behind him.

Obito yelped in shock. Oh, _crap_. There wasn't enough time for him to dodge whatever the other had in his hands, and as he turned around to face the enemy nin, Obito had a sinking feeling in his stomach that he wasn't going to come out of this mission alive.

_Mom.. Dad... Rin... I'm sorry!_

He heard a wet squirting sound and stared at the blood that now covered the front of his jacket. D-did they stab him? But he felt perfectly fine!

"Don't stand there like an idiot, Obito." A familiar voice drawled, and Obito blinked. A silver haired figure was standing over the enemy nin who had been perfectly poised to end his life in one blow- but it couldn't be, he had stayed behind!

"Kakashi..." He gasped, eyes wide behind his goggles. "You...?"

"Heh. I can't leave it all to a crybaby ninja like you!"

Obito knew he should be pissed off at being called a crybaby again- it's all dust, seriously!- but right now, he found that he didn't really care. Staring at his teammate in amazement, he wondered if this was really happening. Though Kakashi had told him in no uncertain terms that there was no way he would come back and save Rin... he was here, and he just saved Obito's life.

Hah, maybe Kakashi wasn't as much of a bastard as he thought!

More Iwa nin were appearing out of the shadows of the cave, and Obito tensed himself for a fight. But he wasn't all that worried. After all, he had his teammate by his side, didn't he?

* * *

Obito had never had any friends, not really.

The fellow Uchiha clan kids had avoided him and the other Academy students made fun of him most of the time. His parents had died when he was young, leaving behind only a yellowing old family photo taken when Obito was still a baby. After the mission that had gone horribly wrong, he had been taken in by some of the elders of the Uchiha Clan. He became a legal adult when he became genin, and was given a small property on the outskirts of the Uchiha Clan compound.

Other Uchiha families used him as an example to their children- an example of what not to be like. He was the black sheep of the clan, the one who couldn't activate his Sharingan at age thirteen. Not to mention, he wore _goggles_. What kind of self-respecting Uchiha had such weak, such flawed eyes to need eyewear?

They never said it to his face, but Obito wasn't deaf- he knew what exactly they said about him.

Now that he thought of it, Rin was the only person who actually treated him with any kind of respect at all. Well, that and the old people he helped on a daily basis- and Mikoto-san and little Itachi, who he took out to dango sometimes, who seemed to be the only people in the Uchiha Clan who would care whether he was alive or not. But they didn't _really_ count, did they?

He had cheered when he was placed on the same team as Rin- up until he found out that the other teammate would be some genius brat who had been the apprentice of their teacher- the infamous Yellow Flash!- since he was _five_. Then they had actually met, and Obito had been introduced to the biggest jerk he knew.

But now, Kakashi didn't seem that bad- not anymore. Maybe, just maybe, Obito could count him as a friend.

* * *

It had all gone downhill from there. Kakashi got his eye slashed open by a kunai, all because Obito was too slow to dodge. And yet, the bastard didn't even seem to care that he had just, more likely than not, lost his eye- _permanently_.

Dammit. He could feel some tears dripping from the corners of his eyes, and he knew that Kakashi could see them too. He swallowed a lump in his throat, humiliated. Nngh... Hell, _Kakashi_ was the one who lost an eye, and _he_ wasn't crying.

But the jounin didn't even insult him, only saying gruffly that he was still alive and so there was no reason for tears. He even seemed to have gained a sense of humor- a really crappy one, and at the worst time possible- even joking weakly about dust.

It's always other people who saved him. Obito didn't want to be useless, didn't want to drag his team down.

_I can't let that happen- not again_, he swore to himself, _I won't be the idiot anymore. Now it's my turn to save my teammates... Kakashi... Rin.._.

That was when everything changed.

It was an incredible moment where all of his senses intensified. Obito stood tense, letting the new knowledge wash over him, suddenly aware of the small breeze wafting around him, the quiet rustle of leaves, the heavy breaths of his bleeding friend kneeling next to him.

And- of a presence behind them, someone who absolutely did not belong, someone lifting his arms up, ready to strike.

Instinctively, the boy plunged a kunai behind him, into the collection of bright blue chakra pathways.

Kakashi stared, his one eye wide, as his teammate stabbed what seemed to be thin air, and _gaped_ as the 'thin air' reformed into the form of an Iwa nin, bleeding from the grievous wound in his belly .

"H-How...? I shouldn't be seen..." The man grunted in pain, eyes comically wide. "You... those eyes...?"

One tomoe spun in Obito's scarlet eyes. _The Sharingan!_ He thought to himself, almost gleefully. The Uchiha had almost thought that he would never get the signature doujutsu of his clan- but he had, and with great timing too!

"Yeah... this is the Sharingan- I can see the movement of chakra-!" He stared awestruck at his own hands.

_I can finally protect the people I care about!_

Kakashi groaned behind him. "Ngh... My left eye... I think it's completely useless. But it's alright. I have the medicine pack from Rin- I'll live."

Obito gave Kakashi a worried look, but nodded firmly. It wasn't as if they could do anything about that eye right now. Rin was an amazing medic nin. She could fix Kakashi back up- as soon as they found her.

* * *

They found Rin sitting blankly in the corner of the cave, an Iwa nin touching her hair and murmuring something Obito couldn't quite catch. His hands clenched into tight, bloodless white fists, fury boiling in him. How _dare_ the bastard touch her like that?

"She's under a genjutsu..." He remarked to himself, noticing the irregular chakra pathways under Rin's skin.

The Iwa nin noticed their approach and attacked. The Uchiha hesitated for a moment, like a newbie shinobi frozen by killer intent- but moved at the last second, allowing Kakashi to strike the enemy nin, who was caught off guard by the teamwork.

_ Ha!_ He thought to himself proudly, _serves you right to underestimate 'kids'!_

Once the danger was gone, Obito ran over to Rin and released her from her genjutsu. The girl looked up, surprised, and he told her excitedly, "We're here to save you now! Let's go."

Rin smiled.

"Heh-! You brats... that was a good combination. But now, you're right in my hands-!"

Obito sweatdropped. Maybe they shouldn't have ignored the last Iwa nin so readily... But he couldn't do much damage, right? They were in a cave! Any attack would kill him along with them...

"Earth Release! Rock Lodgement Destruction!"

Crap. The boulders that made up the roof of the cave began to rain down on them, one of them slamming onto the ground right next to Obito's foot. That... was too close. He shuddered.

"We have to get out of here now!" Kakashi shouted, somewhat needlessly, and ran toward the entrance, Rin and Obito racing after him.

Then the shit hit the fan- or in this case, a rock hit the jounin right in his blind spot, sending Kakashi sprawling onto the dusty floor. Obito leapt forward to help him up, only to notice a growing black shadow around the jounin's fallen body. He tilted his head heavenwards.

A rock- a boulder, a huge one at that- was coming straight toward them. Obito reacted instinctively, throwing Kakashi out of harm's way- but leaving no time for himself to get out of the boulder's path.

Obito held Rin's terrified gaze for a short second. _Sorry Rin... Kakashi... looks like I'm not going to be able to leave this cave with you guys._

He could almost feel the boulder on top of him- gravity not yet taking its course- and that was when Obito realized something.

He didn't want to die- which was kinda obvious, nobody wants to die, not really. It was human nature! But if the boulder fell on him, he would die- after all, who can survive a half ton of rock crushing their body?

In a last moment of desperation, Obito forced all of his chakra towards his eyes. Which was strange, because it wasn't like activating his Sharingan could get him out of this situation... could it?

But something _must_ have happened, because the heavy weight of that boulder just starting to crush his body... disappeared. He breathed a sigh of relief.

Then Rin disappeared, along with everything else. The cave he was in, the boulder, his teammates.. Obito blinked, and he wasn't in the cave anymore. In fact, everything was _black. No, _he decided, _not _black- _almost like- a sort of _nothingness. For some reason, he felt like he was floating.

_What... the hell?_

But just as he was about to panic and swing his arms wildly, Obito felt gravity pull him down and he thudded onto a cold, rocky ground.

Wait... this wasn't the cave- there was dirt here, not only rocks- a very familiar feeling dirt at that. He would know. After all, he had spent most of his thirteen years getting his face rubbed into this dirt by the older kids.

He looked up with wide eyes and realized with a start that he knew where he was. He was right outside the... _Uchiha Compound?_

"Eh-?"

* * *

_Is this... the afterlife?_

It made sense, even though he desperately hoped it wasn't true. But what other possibility was there? The last thing he knew was that he was going to get smashed by a huge ass rock.

He didn't have time get out from under it- and besides, wouldn't he be still in the cave if he had?

So... he was dead, huh? But he saved his teammates, and that's the important thing. Obito wiped at his eyes furiously. Ugh, why did there have to be dust in the afterlife?

But the Uchiha Compound... damnit, Obito did not want to spend his eternal afterlife in a place like this! It held only unpleasant memories for him- after all, he never knew his parents and the only thing he had left of them was a crumply, old photograph of them holding him as a baby, a few months before they went on their final mission.

The only other two Uchiha he liked were alive, anyways, so he shouldn't be seeing them here.

The Compound was eerily silent, but Obito chalked it up to everyone in it being... well, dead.

He was right about that, but not exactly in the way he thought.

* * *

Obito got up slowly, determinedly trying to stand on his wobbly feet. Whatever had happened... it took a lot of chakra out of him. He made his way to his family home steadily- maybe his parents were waiting for him; maybe, he could actually get to know them!

But nobody greeted him when he rapped his knuckles on the wood, and when the boy pushed open the unlocked door, the room was dim and a strange coppery scent filled the air.

"...Mother? Father? Um... it's your son! Obito! Are... you there?" He called out nervously.

There was no answer.

Obito took a step in and froze. He had just... stepped in something- a puddle of something sticky, wet...

Leaning down, he touched some with a finger and brought it up to his eyes, squinting to see in the darkness, and yelped in surprise.

It was blood.

The Uchiha saw the vague outline of a person on the ground and after a brief examination, during which Obito desperately tried not to retch, he found that it belonged to an Uchiha, one who he did not recognize. Blood stained the back of the man's shirt, turning the symbol into a pure crimson blob instead of the bi-colored fan.

His head started pounding, his throat was constricting, and before he knew it, he was running out of the house in a panic. _This- this was not the afterlife, not when there's dead bodies lying around!_

The neighboring home contained three more bodies- one of which belonged to a _baby_; what kind of monster would do something like this? All the bodies bore wounds that seemed to have been caused by an expertly wielded katana.

Obito had to tell someone- a Clan elder, or even Fugaku-san, even if the man was an uptight bastard. Someone had massacred a bunch of Uchihas, but they weren't going to get away with it- not if he could help it!

_Rin... Kakashi... I'm still alive! I'll find you guys again- but first I have to catch an Uchiha killer!_

* * *

There was a single illuminated house. _That's the house of the Clan Head_, the boy thought to himself, _the Uchiha officials are probably holding a meeting in there._ With this in mind, he ran in noisily, shouting, "Uchiha-sama! There are bodies in the-!"

The room was empty except for the slight form of a dangerous looking boy dressed in bloodstained ANBU uniform, holding a bloody katana in his hand. There was no doubt to which clan he belonged to- his raven black hair and blood red Sharingan (though with a pattern Obito had never seen before) made it beyond obvious.

"Y-You... you're the one who did this!" Obito stammered out, fear pulsating through him.

The other boy gave no reply, simply turning his head to look at him with emotionless eyes.

"H-Hey, don't look at me like that! You're an Uchiha too- why would you kill everyone else?" Obito shouted again, this time activating his Sharingan and glaring at the other with intense loathing.

The sight of the other's Sharingan sparked a violent reaction from the young ANBU, and he lunged forward to strike the other down.

_Dammit, I guess he's only targeting Uchihas..._ Obito thought, and cursed himself for getting himself into this situation. Maybe it would have been a good idea to wait...

He dodged the first blow with some difficulty and just barely avoided the second. He landed on his bottom and scrambled away desperately before his back thudded into the back wall, air escaping his lungs in one big huff.

But it was too late- the traitor Uchiha, whoever he was, was already upon him. Obito could see his own frightened reflection in the cold steel and swallowed nervously- had he somehow survived the cave in, only to get killed by some lunatic Uchiha?

Steel flashed and Obito waited for death, the second time that day, wishing desperately that he could turn transparent or something and avoid that deadly blade...

The tip of the katana cut deep into the wall of the compound with a thwip. Obito looked down in surprise and nearly screamed. The foot of steel had gone right through his chest, where his heart should be.

...But there wasn't any blood, nor was there pain... Was he a... ghost...?

His attacker was taken aback, looking distinctly confused. He yanked the blade out of the wall- and Obito's chest- and stared, surprised.

Obito jumped up with an energy he didn't know he had and pointed a triumphant finger at the ANBU. "Ha!" He crowed gloatingly, "Try to kill me all you want, but you won't succeed-!"

A shuriken flew from the other's hand and embedded itself deep into Obito's hand. He looked at it in horror, then stared at its thrower, then back at his injury.

"Um-! Forget I said anything, don't kill me!" Obito wailed pathetically, scrambling away from the insane murderer.

His attacker ignored his pleas and shifted into a proper stance, preparing to strike again.

Well, _shit_.

"Itachi. Stop."

Obito opened an eye carefully and gawked at the sudden new arrival in the back of the room. What a weirdo! The man had on an orange mask with what looked like black flames on the edges, with a single eyehole. Though... he had a great hairstyle, Obito had to admit. A bit long, but definitely stylish.

The homicidal ANBU- Itachi, apparently? He didn't know the name was common- paused hesitantly.

"Madara-sama, he knows too much now, he-"

The masked man interrupted him. "Don't question me. Leave this one."

Itachi nodded reluctantly, wiping his viscera covered katana on a cloth and slipping it back into his sheath.

Well, saving Obito from certain death definitely gave 'Madara-sama'- and that rang a bell- points, in his opinion. He opened his mouth to thank the man-

"Itachi, go 'take care' of your brother. I've already finished off the rest of the Uchiha."

Or not.

"_Y-you_ killed them all? You bastard!" Obito seethed, giving him a hateful crimson glare.

The cloaked man chuckled and looked at him amusedly. Obito was shocked to see the tell tale red of a Sharingan coming from his eyehole.

_He's... also an Uchiha?_

"Heh. You... are a strange one. One day, when we're not so strapped for time... I'll have to see where exactly you came from- and who made you."

What...?

"Itachi. Let's go."

"H-Hey wait-!" Obito yelped, stumbling toward the pair to no avail. They disappeared in a puff of smoke.

_Ngh-! _

He had exhausted too much chakra today, and Obito certainly felt the effects now. His legs crumpled from beneath him and he slumped to the ground bonelessly, losing control of his body.

The world turned dark for Obito as he fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

**A/N: **

**There isn't really a good place to explain it in the actual story, so as of now, this is the whole time travel/dimension travel reasoning: Even though Obito shouldn't have the Mangekyo Sharingan, and thus Kamui, he somehow used it to survive the boulder crushing, so I'm incorporating it here too. Kamui involves sending something into a different dimension- including yourself. So what if an overuse sent /everything/ into another dimension? Basically, Obito is from a dimension parallel to the original canon, so the Obito from canon still becomes what he did, and Kakashi still has the eye.**

**The title... well, obviously it won't have that much in common with the movie with the related title, but I'll probably make this fic a bit more comedic than my other ones. After all, you put two pranksters in one apartment, you're bound to get some... interesting results.**

**I dedicate this fic to BC, who helped with editing and writing the story. The next update will probably be up in no more than a week. The cover image is from zerochan, with some editing involved.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Or, in which Obito decides he kind of hates the future**

A certain distance from the Uchiha compound, the Sandaime Hokage took a deep drag of his pipe and pinched the bridge of this nose.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was not happy, and hadn't been for almost a month- and to a lesser extent, not since the Kyuubi attack that killed off his successor(along with half the village), ultimately dissipating his plans for a lazy, carefree retirement.

For the last seven years, he had been futilely searching for a caretaker for one Naruto Uzumaki, the Kyuubi jinchuriki, who also happened to be the son of Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, and Kushina Uzumaki, the Bloody Red Habenero- not that the boy knew, of course.

The obvious choice would be Kakashi Hatake, Minato's only surviving student- after a certain mission in Rock, and another in the Mist. But that hadn't worked out too well.

Kakashi didn't refuse- his honor would not allow for that. But it soon became clear that having a cold-blooded, mentally unstable ANBU killer as Naruto's primary caretaker wasn't the best idea. In addition to that, the ANBU was often on long-term S-ranks, leaving long periods of time when the boy was left unattended.

Sarutobi gave the task to several of his shinobi as a temporary solution, but after an assassination attempt from a chuunin whose sister died in the Kyuubi attack, it was clear that Naruto needed a permanent caretaker, trustworthy and loyal to the village, while also having a motivation to take notice of any… curious injuries the boy might receive.

That was a task _much_ easier said than done.

The people the Sandaime could really trust… that number was few, very few, and those who had the time to take care of a pre-pubescent boy could be counted on one hand. Most of them, had also lost loved ones in the Kyuubi attack, and thus had some sort of prejudice against the jinchuriki.

The only one he could recall _not_ having such, excluding ANBU Wolf, was Uchiha Itachi. He had been strongly considering the man- boy, really- but he was out of the question now.

After all, if it went according to plan, Itachi would be a nuke nin within the next five hours.

The Council had ordered the boy to destroy the Uchiha Clan- every man, woman, and child… and after carefully considering the circumstances, the Sandaime had reluctantly agreed.

The Uchihas were planning a revolt- a coup d'etat against the village. Though they already held an obscene amount of power in the village, made up the majority of the police force and were allowed to keep all the secrets of their immensely powerful doujutsu, it wasn't enough.

And so, they had to be eliminated- and Uchiha Itachi, ANBU Captain at the age of 13, trusted shinobi of the Leaf, was the prime candidate.

_Any second now_, the old man thought, _and we'll see if the plan those old codgers in the Council made actually worked._

Sarutobi almost wished that Itachi would- for once- shirk his duty and refuse his mission. But the boy had accepted with cold, emotionless eyes, asking for only one thing- that he be allowed to spare his younger brother, Sasuke.

A sudden _poof _of smoke in the corner of the Hokage's office brought the old man out of his musings.

"Hokage-sama." The bear-masked man dipped his head in respect.

"ANBU Bear. Why are you here?" The Hokage asked, though he had a sinking feeling that he knew exactly why.

"There was a… massacre at the Uchiha compound. The casualties are severe, and the bodies of the Clan Head and Uchiha council have already been discovered."

So… Itachi had succeeded.

"Did the ANBU find any survivors?"

"Two, Hokage-sama, but we are still searching."

_Two?_ But if Itachi had adhered to the plan, there should only be one- Sarutobi was sure that one of the two was the ANBU Captain's younger brother, but who was the other?

He must have verbalized his thought, because ANBU Bear hesitated and spoke slowly, "Uchiha Sasuke and… Uchiha Obito."

Obito? There was an Uchiha named Obito? The name sounded vaguely familiar to the old man but its origin remained out of reach. Maybe he _was_ getting too old… if it wasn't for the damn Kyuubi killing off Minato and forcing him out of retirement, Sarutobi could be enjoying a nice vacation relaxing on a warm beach in one of the better parts of Wind Country.

Wait.

A metaphorical lightbulb dinged above the Sandaime's balding head and his jaw dropped open in a decidedly un Hokage-like way.

Uchiha _Obito_? Minato's past student? The one who had died almost a decade ago, and the original owner of Hatake Kakashi's Sharingan?

"…Are you sure it is him? The Uchiha clan tends to look similar to one another, after all- maybe just a close relative?" the old man sputtered out, trying to reason this impossibility.

"That was our initial assumption; however… the medical records matched up, and the Uchiha gave his name as such when he initially woke. He's demanding to talk to you, Hokage-sama… apparently, he was in the Uchiha Compound when the massacre occurred."

The Sandaime got up abruptly, sending a stack of paperwork to the ground.

"I'll go. Where is he? And…" Sarutobi thought of something. "Does he have any… injuries of any sort? Any part of his body crushed? Maybe… a missing eye?"

"The medic nins reported only of chakra exhaustion and an injury from a shruiken on his hand." The ANBU inclined his head. "I will escort you there, Hokage-sama, and act as protection."

Sarutobi would've scoff if he didn't have to put up the appearances of the respected Sandaime Hokage- _him_? Need protection? But as it was, he accepted reluctantly.

Two clouds of smoke appeared in the Hokage's office, and by the time the air cleared, the two shinobi were gone.

* * *

"H-Hey! What are you doing- where's the old man? If you won't let me talk to Rin or Minato-sensei or even Kakashi-teme, then at least let me talk to the Hokage! He knows me!"

Obito Uchiha, tossing and turning on his hospital bed, shouted angrily at the medic nins who passed by. Once in a while, someone would stare at him like he was a lunatic and then walk away hurriedly.

The Uchiha had woken up to the blank white ceiling of Konoha's local hospital, and within seconds, found that he was cuffed to the railing. Normally, he could break out of those, no problem- but some bastard had sealed his chakra!

He scowled to himself irritatedly. He was a Konoha chuunin, dammit! He had rights!

A hospital worker must have noticed that he had woke up, because within minutes, Obito had several ANBU standing at his bedside. They asked him weird questions- like who he was and what he was doing on Uchiha grounds- and had glanced at him disbelievingly when he answered them.

Why was it so hard to believe that he was Uchiha Obito? He told them that they could question Kakashi, Rin, or Minato-sensei if they still didn't believe him. All they did in response was to look at him behind emotionless animal masks.

And as suddenly as they arrived, they shunshined away, leaving a very frustrated Obito, swearing at thin air. That had been almost an hour ago, and the Uchiha had been trying nonstop to escape this loony place and back to his teammates.

This was Konoha- if he just could get out, he could easily find his way to the Hokage's building and get the old man Sandaime to prove his identity.

Obito took a moment to catch his breath. Wow, he must have _really_ overused his chakra if he got this exhausted just from that!

The door to his room opened, and two figures, one dressed in familiar Hokage robes and the other in traditional ANBU uniform walked in.

Obito's eyes lit up and began to ramble. "Hokage-sama! You gotta get me out of here; these guys won't tell me anything about Kakashi or Rin or Sensei, and they keep asking me weird questions, and-"

"You… you're really Obito." The Sandaime stared at him with shocked wide eyes.

The Uchiha sweatdropped. It hadn't been that long… has it? Last time he'd seen the Hokage, it was during the mission briefing a few days before Kannabi Bridge.

But… could it be? Maybe the rumors were true- the old man was finally going senile!

"Yeah, I'm Obito, Obito Uchiha- I'm Minato Namikaze's student, remember?"

There was an awkward pause. Obito shifted uncomfortably in his bed.

"Um… can you let me out of the bed? I promise not to try to escape…"

That shook the elder man out of his haze. "Yes, of course, ANBU Bear, please-"

The ANBU interrupted, "I apologize for my insubordination, Hokage-sama, but do you really think it's a good idea…? We don't know about his capabilities- or whether or not he is as harmless as he pretends to be."

"Hey! Are you calling me a traitor?" Obito shouted angrily.

"Hn."

"Bear-san. Are you insuinating that I, the Sandaime Hokage, cannot protect myself against a Chuunin?" The Sandaime added sternly.

The ANBU lost his composure for the first time. "N-no, of course not, Hokage-sama…"

_Hah!_ Serves the jerk right for even _considering _that Obito was a traitor. Like he would _ever_ desert his teammates!

A few moments later, Obito sat tiredly on his hospital bed, chakra unsealed, looking expectantly at the Sandaime.

"Umm… Hokage-sama… where's my team? Last time I saw them, we were still on the mission in Iwa… Are they alright?" He asked hesitantly.

The elder man gave him a strange look and sighed heavily. "This is not the best place for that discussion, especially with what happened tonight. ANBU Bear- bring him to my office. I will talk to him there- privately."

"And… Obito? You have a great deal of explaining to do."

* * *

The boy sat in the Hokage's office, fidgeting nervously. Two ANBU stood outside the doors, ready to burst in at any sign of violence.

The Sandaime asked incredulously, "…So, you were in a cave deep in Iwa Country- and the next thing you knew, you were lying in front of the Uchiha Compound in Konohaghakure?"

Obito sweatdropped. "Well, yeah, but when you say it like that… it does sound pretty… crazy."

The other watched him seriously. "This is 'crazier' than you think- surprising as it may be."

…_Eh_? What was the old man blabbing about?

"Take a look at these records… you'll see what I mean."

A handful of yellowing parchments was pushed into his hands. He squinted and read the small characters- and choked as he tried to take it in.

Uchiha Obito, age 13… _Killed in action _at _Kannabi Bridge_? Body never recovered… Original owner of Kakashi Hatake's… _Sharingan_?

"B-But- I'm not _dead_! And I never gave Kakashi-teme my Sharingan!" Obito shouted disbelievingly.

The Sandaime sighed. "The Kannabi Bridge mission occurred seven years ago, and you look the exactly the same as you did then. Unless you somehow… _time traveled_ your way to the future, there's no possible way you are who you say you are."

_Seven _years ago? But- that's- _impossible_! Obito thought, shaking his head, utterly baffled. But... the hospital had looked different from the few times Obito had landed himself in it before… and now that he thought about it, the old man had a few extra creases on his elderly face that hadn't been there before…

But _time travel_ of all things wasn't possible… right? Unless…

Obito's jaw dropped- that must be it! He must be such an amazing shinobi that he invented and immediately used a jutsu that brought him to the future! After all, if _Kakashi_ could do it, who's to say he couldn't?

The Hokage looked at him blankly.

…Maybe it wasn't a good idea to shout that out loud…

Just then, an ANBU opened the door to the office and walked in brazenly. The man's stride broke for a moment when he caught a glimpse of Obito, but turned his head away, giving the Sandaime all his attention and bowed to him .

"ANBU Wolf." The Hokage said, nodding his head in acknowledgement.

…_Whoever Wolf is, he's a total mess,_ Obito thought. Blood and dirt caked every inch of the sleek black, skin-tight uniform, and the Uchiha couldn't even tell what color the man's hair was. And though the ANBU stood just a few feet away from him, the man ignored him completely, adamantly refusing to even acknowledge his presence.

_If this is the future_, Obito decided, _then the future is filled with jerks_.

"Hokage-sama." The ANBU stated in a blunt monotone, and giving no pleasantries, "Is it true that the Uchiha Clan has been massacred?"

Before Obito could interrupt, the Hokage replied sadly, "…Unfortunately, yes. There are only… two survivors. The perpetrator- or perpetrators- are still unknown."

What…? _Massacred_? ...So the orange masked guy wasn't bluffing after all- he and the crazy ANBU really _had_ taken down his clan… but there was no way! The Uchihas were one of the strongest in the Konoha- it wasn't like two shinobi, even if they _were_ also Uchiha, could kill everyone… right? But he had a unsettling pit in his stomach, a feeling that maybe just maybe...

"_Everyone's_ gone?" Obito asked horrified. Though he had never been really close to Uchiha Clan- being the outcast, the black sheep- they were still his family! …Even if Rin and Sensei treated him like family more than they had…

"…From what we know now, yes." The Sandaime said gravely.

There was an awkward silence, with a tension that could be cut with a butter knife.

It was interrupted by a strangled choking sound that came from the ANBU's direction. "Hokage-sama, you can see him too? ...If this is part of another one of your plans to get me to go to one of those therapy sessions..." he trailed off almost threateningly.

"Ah. Yes. Well, Wolf-san, I'm assuming you still have your Sharingan activated from your latest mission? I'm assuming, from your appearance- that you've just returned- two days earlier than planned, in fact. Take a look at him- what does he look like?"

Obito was confused- wait, does this 'Wolf' know him or something? And with the Sharingan... the guy has to be an Uchiha- but didn't the old man say that all the Uchihas were dead? Was this the other survivor?

The ANBU stared at him dubiously through the porcelain wolf mask.

"He's- he looks like Obito- exactly like he did on the day he died..." And, in a softer voice that Obito almost couldn't hear, the man continued, "...He looks less dead than the other hallucinations.."

"I'm _not_ dead! I'm not a... hallucination either!"

Obito was ignored again.

The Hokage blinked. "Well. If your Sharingan saw _that_, then either he's under an incredible genjutsu previously unknown to the shinobi world... or he is what he says he is."

Wolf seemed almost dazed with complete confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I'm saying, Wolf-san, that this boy here... is Obito Uchiha, from mere seconds before his death."

The ANBU didn't speak for a few moments, mask facing Obito. The boy started sweating uneasily- it was like the guy was analyzing every stitch of clothing he was wearing, every raven strand of hair on his head. It was really disturbing.

"Um... ANBU-san, do you know me from somewhere?" He ventured.

Wolf moved towards Obito on unsteady feet, hands visibly trembling. The Uchiha tensed- he didn't want to get attacked by another psycho ANBU, dammit! But the man just stood right in front of him, towering- well, that wasn't the right word; the ANBU must have been a midget or something, because he was only a teeny few inches taller than Obito- over him, fixing him with that weird intent look.

"Obito- you're... really Obito? How are you _alive_?"

"Well, yeah, that's me, time travel I think, but- who _are_ you?" Okay, now he was _really_ creeped by this relative of his. Did the Uchiha Clan really go downhill, or what?

It was then that Obito caught a glimpse of silver hair- matted by blood and dirt, but the same shade as that of only one person that he knew.

ANBU Wolf took off his mask with shaking hands to reveal a _very_ familiar face mask and a pair of wide open mismatched eyes- one steely grey, and the other a blood red Sharingan. Without the mask to hold it up, some of the man's silvery white hair fell, covering part of his face.

It became immediately obvious to Obito who the man was- who else had white hair and covered half of their face with a mask on a daily basis? But it has only been seven years- even _he_ couldn't become an ANBU that quickly, can he?

"Y-you-!" The Uchiha choked out. Now, it was his turn to stare. "You're _Kakashi_?"

**A/N: So this chapter was supposed to be longer, but it would probably take a couple more days for me to finish to that much- and I haven't updated for a while, so here you go. Please point out any inconsistencies in the plot- time travel stories are pretty hard. Obito probably meets up with Naruto either next chapter, or the chapter after that.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**or**

**The Resurrection of Team Minato (Or Half Of It, At Least)**

* * *

The Yellow Flash and his team became infamous during the Third Shinobi War. Their enemies in Iwa spoke fearfully of the lightning-quick assassin and his inhuman child troops who destroyed with no hesitation, while Konoha celebrated and cheered on the incredible shinobi squad.

To many of the civilians and genin residing in Konohagakure, Team Minato seemed invincible. But the shinobi forces understood too well the reality of war. Such legends rarely stayed this way for long.

The beginning of the end for Team Minato was Obito's death. The brave, young boy had been crushed under an obscene load of boulders during the Kannabi Bridge mission, and his damaged teammates never really managed to recover from the blow. Just a few months after her teammate's death, Rin followed, after a particularly disastrous mission in Mizu.

Neither of their bodies had been found- the location of Obito's body making it impossible to recover, and Rin's corpse had disappeared curiously without a trace from the bloody field where she died.

Then Kakashi had joined the ANBU, and Sensei had become the Yondaime. Needless to say, they were unable to interact much outside of mission briefings.

Even that had not lasted long- the night of the Kyuubi attack, Namikaze Minato had sealed the rioting beast into his own son, at the cost of his own life.

For the last, so very lonely, seven years, Kakashi had been the only remaining member of the infamous Team Minato.

But now, it seems that he may _not_ be.

Obito Uchiha- _still just a kid, still wearing his tacky orange and blue jacket, those familiar orange goggles_- returned Kakashi's wide-eyed gaze with an expression of complete and utter shock.

* * *

Actually, this was not the first time Kakashi had seen his teammate since the other's death.

The specters of the three deceased members of Team Minato haunted him daily- mostly literally; Rin gazing at him in that pained expression- the same one she had the day she died, and his Sensei looking at him in utter disappointment_._

But Obito had been the beginning- the first and worst one that had appeared. Kakashi had seen that particular phantom just a few days after returning from Kannabi Bridge, a sterile white bandage still over his new Sharingan eye. The jounin had stood tiredly in front of the Memorial Stone, slowly tracing the crudely carved characters of his teammate's name with his fingertips, before feeling a stare set on him.

He had turned around quickly- and immediately recoiled in horror.

Obito Uchiha stood a mere few inches from him. There was no question that he was dead- he _looked_ dead; a deathly pallor to what little skin Kakashi could see under the dripping blood, and there were places where his flesh had begun to rot. One of his eyes had been crushed by the massive boulder that had claimed his life, clear vitreous humor mixing in with crimson red, the other a gaping, grotesque socket hole.

Kakashi scrambled away and ran, pushing his legs until they burned, his heart beats blocking out any sound. He could feel his teammate's dead gaze on him all the way to Sensei's apartment.

The Yellow Flash was not oblivious to the mental trauma inherent in the majority of shinobis. Kakashi was informed of 'hallucinations' and 'seeing things', and was told to get therapy.

Four grueling hours later, the Hatake decided he'd rather see Obito's bloody corpse everyday for the rest of his life than attend another therapy session. Eventually though, the phantom made an appearance less and less- until Rin's death, after which Rin, with a disgustingly gaping hole in her chest, had joined Obito in haunting their remaining teammate.

Strange as it may be, Kakashi thought he might actually be getting used to it. Though gory, the sight was no worse than what he saw on his countless ANBU missions, and he already bore heavy guilt daily. It was almost... comforting, in some way, to have his teammates still with him. In some saner part of his mind, the ANBU knew that it was kind of screwed up that his only 'friends' were hallucinations of his mutilated teammates.

So when the young ANBU returned from another S-ranked suicide mission and learned of the Uchiha Massacre, he wasn't surprised to see Obito waiting for him in the Hokage's office, staring at him in disgust. It _was_ his family, after all.

What _did_ shock him, however, was that the Sandaime could see Obito as well.

* * *

Possibilities flashed through the Hatake's mind. A genjutsu? But surely, Obito's Sharingan could see through it with ease- a close relative, perhaps? Kakashi attempted to fit reason after reason to explain this impossibility. But even so, there was no answer, no way even an Uchiha could look completely identical to their dead relative, and have those jacket, the goggles that he had last seen bloodstained and smashed...

The Sandaime had followed in his predecessor's- or would that be successor's?- path in finding ways to try to get Kakashi into therapy. It was unlikely, but still possible that he discovered Kakashi's habitual hallucinations and included it in another of his little ploys...

But the old man swore that this Obito look-alike... really _was_ Obito, not pseudo. The explanation was impossible, of course- time travel jutsu had been banned since the time of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju, and it seemed unlikely that a thirteen year old chuunin would be the one to unearth one of those long lost techniques. But right now, Kakashi wasn't thinking logically.

"O-Obito? Y-you're... _really_ Obito? How are you alive?" He gasped, reaching forward hesitantly- if it was a hallucination, it shouldn't be solid. As a side thought, Kakashi took off his ANBU mask. He didn't need it, not now.

The Sandaime watched the scene in amusement. He still remembered Team Minato and the interactions between its members- the pranks, the insults, the hidden camaraderie- and hadn't seen a team like it since. They had almost reminded him of his old squad- the ones who had gone on to become the Legendary Sannin.

The Uchiha and the Hatake stared at each other for a brief, awkward moment before the ANBU poked the other squarely in the chest.

"H-hey!" Obito said instinctively, "Don't poke me, you jerk!'

The other man blinked once, surprised.

* * *

They talked. Kakashi told Obito about the events of the Kannabi Bridge, about what had happened after the boulder- how the Uchiha had given his Sharingan to his teammate as a gift for making jounin rank and had been buried under the rocks after another cave in. In turn, Obito told him about how he had found himself on the Uchiha grounds seconds before the boulder hit him and the slaughter that had he had barely survived.

For some reason, both Kakashi and the Sandaime were keeping oddly quiet about the other two members of Team Minato. Obito asked uneasily, "So, where's Rin and Sensei? Not that I'm not happy to see you, Kakashi, but..." He trailed off.

No one spoke. The ANBU shot the Hokage a pleading look, but was ignored. Finally, Kakashi sighed.

"...Rin's dead." He said. "So is Sensei."

There was a beat.

"W-What? _How_?" Obito choked. Sensei was probably the strongest shinobi in the village! And Rin... he _told_ Kakashi to protect her! How could they have died?

"Rin... it was during a mission in Mist. We were attacked by hunter nin, and she was killed during the fight. I'm sorry, Obito, it's my fault- I was too weak, I couldn't protect her."

Just a few hours ago, to Obito at least, Rin had just been saved from a grisly fate. But now, she was gone. Dead. He felt a sudden rush of anger- how could Kakashi just let her die? He should have saved her!

But no matter how much he wanted to deny it, Obito knew that it wasn't Kakashi's fault. The shinobi world was dangerous, and Rin was her own kunoichi. She wasn't a delicate flower who had to be protected from all dangers... but still. _Rin_. She was his best friend!

His throat suddenly felt clogged, but he choked out, "N-No, it's not your fault. Even you can't stop everything!" Obito forced a weak smile and said jokingly, "I mean, it's not as if you killed her yourself, right?"

Kakashi made a strangled noise behind his mask. "Ha. Aha. Of course not."

...That was a weird sounding laugh, and Obito wasn't so oblivious not to notice how vague his teammate was being about Rin. But here in the future- well, if he couldn't trust his teammate, who _could_ he trust?

"Um, what about Sensei? He's the Yellow Flash, he couldn't have gone down easily, could he?"

"He didn't." The ANBU paused. "Sensei died sealing the Nine Tails into his son."

"_What-?_ I thought Kushina-san was the Nine Tails' jinchuriki! And Sensei's _son_? Where did Sensei get a-"

The Sandaime interrupted with a cough, saying, "What Kakashi here _meant_ to say..." he shot a disapproving glance at the other man. "Is that I chose Minato Namikaze as my successor, to be the Yondaime Hokage. He sacrificed his life to save the village from the beast known as the Nine Tailed Fox, sealing it into his newborn son."

Obito stared, stunned. "But- where did Sensei get a _son_?" Last he knew, all sensei had was a girlfriend!

"He married Kushina." Kakashi said.

"Oh. Oh _God_." The Uchiha had a look of complete horror on his face. "She- she got _pregnant_?"

"Yes, that tends to be an important prerequisite for having a baby." His teammate said dryly.

"No. I mean- _Kushina! _Pregnant!" The boy made a series of wild gestures. "I remember the way she acted before, you know- and she could have only gotten worse if she was..." He made a face.

"Oh. Yes. Those were some... interesting months..." Kakashi coughed. "I think that I blocked the majority of that time from memory... There was that one incident at Ichiraku's. One of the aides forgot a part of her order and she had just finished a training session..."

Obito winced. He knew how Kushina-san could get when she was angry... and kept away from her precious ramen...

"Is he still alive?" The Uchiha ventured.

"Depends on your definition of alive."

"Um. Is he still breathing?"

"...Barely. I dare say he might not want to be."

"...You know, Kakashi, I think I might almost be _glad_ that I... died before _that_ happened." Obito shuddered, then his eyes widened when he remembered another key fact. "She had a son? ...Please tell me he takes after his father more than his mother."

"Alright. Naruto takes more after Sensei than Kushina-san."

"...Really?"

"No."

"So- there's _two_ of them now?" Obito liked Kushina, but two of her... he would be surprised if the Leaf was still standing, with two hyperactive Uzumakis in the village.

The Hokage, who had previously been watching the conversation in amusement, broke in with a sigh. "Unfortunately... Uzumaki Kushina was one of the casualties of the Kyuubi attack. She was killed when the Nine Tails was ripped out of her and unleashed on the village."

"Wh-what? Who would do something like that?" Obito demanded, eyes wide. The asshole who did that murdered Kushina-san and basically killed Minato-sensei too!

The old man sighed, "We never found out for sure. But he must have been a formidable foe if he was able to control the monster and get past the Yondaime... and Minato described to me, just before he went out to face the Nine Tales... about a strange man in a mask."

A weirdo in a mask...? Powerful enough to control the Kyuubi? Maybe... even strong enough to slaughter the entire Uchiha Clan? Obito's eyes widened- it couldn't be-!

"Wait, did the guy have an orange mask?" He asked urgently.

"...I don't know. Why, do you know something, Obito?" The Sandaime asked, confused.

"I saw these... these two men at the Massacre." The Uchiha explained quickly, "They were both Uchiha- they had Sharingan. One of them was- he was just a kid! Maybe around my age, I'm not sure, but he was dressed in ANBU uniform. And the other guy... had this orange mask with black flame stripes on it. They were the ones who killed everyone- they said so themselves, and almost killed me too, but I got away!"

"...With only a shuriken wound. Impressive." Kakashi noted. The boy coughed awkwardly- the future people barely believed that he had time traveled here, even with concrete evidence; there was no way they would buy that he could turn intangible at will. Well, maybe not at will... but still!

"Those two... the ANBU must be Itachi Uchiha. He's the only one who fits your description- he's only thirteen. But the masked man..." The Sandaime thought out loud, then pinned Obito with a penetrating stare. "Describe him in further detail."

"Well, um. He had spiky hair, like mine, but a bit longer... The guy was wearing a black cloak, but everything was covered. I couldn't even see anything except for that one Sharingan of his..." Obito frowned, then perked up. "Wait, I know his name! The ANBU called him 'Madara-sama'."

"_Madara?_ Madara _Uchiha_?" Though the Hokage hadn't seem fazed by the revelation of the former's identity, he seemed shell shocked by the second.

"Uh, yeah, I guess? He _is_ an Uchiha..."

Kakashi looked at Obito with slight exasperation. "Obito... Madara Uchiha. Founder of Konoha. Valley of the End. Ring any bells?"

"Well duh- wait. You mean that guy was my _ancestor_? No wonder he covered everything up! He has to be at least a hundred years old!"

"Obito, I think the more important matter at hand is that Madara Uchiha should be dead- he was supposedly killed in the battle at the Valley of the End. Even if he survived, he would have succumbed to old age. Furthermore, the village have records stating of the man's control over the Nine Tails..." The Sandaime scratched his chin, thinking. "It is possible that he was the one who set the Fox on the village... or a student of his who was given the power over the Nine Tails."

Madara Uchiha was still spoken of in the Uchiha Clan in Obito's time, though the boy had no parents to tell him the majority of the stories and legends surrounding the ancient Uchiha ancestor. But even so, he knew the basics- the co-founder of Konohagakure, but either perished or fled after an epic battle with the leader of the Senju clan for the title of Shodaime.

But- the guy was supposed to be just that- a legend, a myth! He wasn't supposed to go around in real life, killing Obito's sensei, Kushina-san, and everyone else who died in the attack by the Fox. Obito clenched his fists in anger. What did all those people do to deserve to die?

The Sandaime interrupted his thoughts, clearing his throat. "Well... we must discuss this at a later time. I will keep the ANBU stationed around the village, looking out for the description you gave me. But now, we must deal with another important matter- where you will be staying. The Uchiha Compound is obviously not an option, and I feel now is not an opportune time to reveal the circumstances for your arrival."

"He can stay in my apartment." Kakashi said. The older man gave him a disbelieving look.

"Your apartment is barely big enough for yourself, let alone you _and_ your teenaged teammate. No, I think I have a better idea. Obito," He said, turning to the Uchiha, " Do you have any experience taking care of young children?"

Eh? What kind of question was that?

"Yeah, I used to baby sit some of my younger cousins... Why?"

Kakashi shot the older man a horrified look. "Hokage-sama, you can't possibly- that's a terrible idea!"

"Naruto needs a caretaker, and you know as well as I do that my options are limited. We both remember that debacle with Ito- and what you did to him afterwards."

Okay, so maybe Obito was missing something here. Wait- Naruto? "Sensei's son? You want me to..." He had a sudden epiphany, and said, surprised, "You want _me_ to take care of Sensei and Kushina's son?"

"Yes."

"But- _why_? I'm not... _responsible_, I only took care of those kids for a week at most- I had a plant once and it _died_, I can't-"

"Obito. Stop."

He shut up.

"I need someone to take care of Naruto- someone who knows about his true parentage, and doesn't hold any animosity against him for the actions of the Fox."

"Can't Kakashi-?"

"He is one of our village's top ANBU, and as such, is needed as an operative for a large number of missions. Obito... you were an orphan yourself. Surely you don't want your Sensei's son to grow up that way?"

Well, what could he possibly say to that? Obito knew very well how it was like without any parents. The Uchihas could scarcely be considered family, except for the few times when Mikoto-san invited him over for dinner. And Sensei's kid didn't have _anyone_- neither Minato-sensei nor Kushina-san had any other relatives.

And realistically... Obito knew he needed somewhere to stay.

"Okay." The Uchiha said. "I'll look after him."

The Sandaime smiled a hidden, victorious smile, pleased at being able to get rid of at least two huge piles of paperwork. Kakashi shot Obito a pitying glance, the universal sign for, _You have no idea what you got yourself into_.

* * *

A few years later, Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage, looked out of his window at the Hokage Mountain- and cursed. Loudly. The visages of his predecessors were covered by crude spray paint, several of the Hokages now sporting some rather spectacular facial hair.

Maybe putting those two pranksters in the same general area wasn't the best idea he ever had...

**A/N: So, that was quite a wait. I apologize; I had been quite strapped for time. As you can see, this chapter was not quite as up to par as the other ones, and when I get the time, I'll probably edit it over. The next chapter may take some time, but I might write an short interlude between the two. However, chapter four will be the actual meeting between the two knuckleheaded ninja of their generations.**

**Again, thank you for reading. If you enjoyed it, or just want to offer some comments on the chapter, please review. Many thanks to the reviewers of the previous chapters.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**A Tale of Two Pranksters**

* * *

It took Naruto roughly two minutes to decide, very emphatically, that he did _not_ like his new babysitter.

The guy- Obito, the old man said his name was- was just a kid! He couldn't be much older than Naruto himself, and the old man had said _he_ was too young to take care of himself. Which, by the way, was _completely_ false. Naruto was totally self-sufficient, granted he had at least fifty packs of instant ramen.

Not to mention... he looked like that bastard Sasuke.

Alright, so now when Naruto actually thought about it, that might not be the best reason to dislike someone. But he had a bad feeling about the guy, and Naruto _always_ trusted his gut feelings. Only... his stomach didn't give him any warnings about Ito, and that bastard had tried to poison him with _ramen_- which in Naruto's mind, was the sign of utmost depravity.

On the other hand... Wolf vouched for him, and Naruto trusted Wolf- probably more than anyone in the village other than the old man.

"Eh... Hey, Naruto. Wanna go out for ramen? I'll treat." Obito offered, a blatant attempt to suck up to his sensei's son. Not that the jinchuriki noticed, of course.

The blonde's jaw dropped. Okay, forget everything he said before- this guy was _awesome_. In a complete change in his previously sullen demeanor, the boy whooped in joy and ran out of the apartment cheering. He hadn't had anything other than cheap instant ramen for _weeks_, and while those were okay, they could never compare to the ramen at Ichiraku's.

Obito stared in shock. "Not even Kushina-san was _that_ crazy about ramen..." He muttered to himself.

* * *

Teuchi raised an eyebrow at the pair in front of him. "New friend, Naruto-kun?" He asked. Naruto tended to patronize the ramen place either by himself, or on some occasions, Iruka-san. But the older black haired boy was a new one.

"He's Obito! He's like my big brother now!" The blonde exclaimed cheerfully before proceeding to inhale his bowl of miso ramen.

_Big brother_? The man gave 'Obito' a scrutinizing look. He wasn't oblivious to the hate of many of the other villagers toward the kid. Could he be using Naruto, lying to him about their relationship to gain his trust?

"Wait, wha-?" Obito choked on his own bowl of ramen. "When was I your brother? Not that I would be against it- of course not- but-" He amended, but trailed off.

"Eh- you're taking care of me, right? But you're not that much older than me, so it's weird if I just call you a 'guardian' or something- and I always wanted an older brother!" Naruto explained.

"But..." The Uchiha swallowed and leaned closer. "I just met you _today_. Why would you suddenly want _me_ as your brother?"

The blonde looked at him seriously. "We-ell... Wolf said you were okay, and you haven't tried to kill me or kidnap me and you haven't called me any names and _you treated me to ramen!_ You would be like- the best big bro ever!"

Obito sweatdropped. That... was a bit of a low standard... but if everything the Sandaime had told him about how Naruto was treated in the village was true, it wasn't exactly surprising. And well... when _he_ was kid, he remembered wanting a brother too.

"Sure," He found himself saying. "I'll be your big brother."

Naruto beamed and set aside his third empty bowl of ramen. Teuchi relaxed. It didn't seem like this Obito kid had any ill-will against his favorite customer.

"Ayame!" He shouted to the back of the ramen shop. "Bring me two more bowls of shoyu- on the house! Naruto-kun here just got new family!"

Obito turned green. He was already full after his _first_ bowl- the portions at Ichiraku's were very generous, after all. Another bowl? But luckily for him, it seemed like Naruto was all too happy to take care of the extra two bowls for him. Kami... it was like the kid had Kushina-san and Minato-sensei's appetite- _combined_.

Which meant very bad news for his wallet. As Obito shelled out the appropriate amount for their meal- which, even with the two bowls on the house, was still quite a bit- Teuchi gave him an appraising look.

"Have I seen you before? You look familiar." The man asked him. Obito felt the blood drain out of his face. Back in the heydays of Team Minato, sensei would often take them to dine at this very ramen place.

"Ha! Ha, of course not!" He lied unconvincingly. "I've never been here in my life!"

Teuchi didn't seem to believe him, but didn't press any further. Obito let out a sigh of relief. He really didn't want to explain to Naruto why there happened to be an Obito Uchiha who ate at Ichiraku's a decade ago who he just happened to look identical to.

* * *

"Naruto! What did I just say about the chakra points on the human body?"

Naruto was startled awake by the angry voice of a very pissed off Iruka Umino. He scratched the back of his blonde hair, and, very carefully answered, "Eh... That... um. They have chakra?"

The class erupted into laughter. The blonde smiled weakly in response.

"No. Look, Naruto, you have to pay attention in class- you'll never become a shinobi if you continue to slack off and sleep during class time." Iruka-sensei continued. He sounded disappointed. Naruto felt a sting of guilt.

"Sorry sensei..." He replied apologetically.

But just a few moments later, Naruto found himself tuning out Iruka-sensei's lecture and began looking all around the classroom. It was then that he realized that Sasuke wasn't at school today- an empty seat between Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka where the Uchiha tended to sit. And here Naruto wanted to brag to his rival about his new big brother.

Okay, so he was a little bit jealous of Sasuke's older brother who taught him all the cool techniques and how to throw kunai and shruikens without missing a single time.

The bell rang, heralding the dismissal of class for the day. A crowd of Academy students poured out of the doors into the arms of their loving parents. Meanwhile, Obito searched the crowd for a telltale flash of orange.

But it seemed that Naruto found him first. Two short arms grabbed him around the chest and he found himself looking into a pair of overjoyed blue eyes.

"Obito-nii-san!"

Everyone went quiet. The nearby parents swiveled around to stare at the unlikely pair. Obito sweatdropped... surely they weren't that surprising?

A weathered looking man with a squinted eye walked up to them. "You... You're the bra- kid's brother?" He queried.

"...Yes, I am."

"Not biological, I see." The man's eyes flashed between Obito and Naruto, taking in their differing hair and eye colors.

"...No."

"Alright, kid, I don't know if ya know, but..." The weird guy's horrible warm breath blew over Obito's right ear. The Uchiha twitched. "That brat's big trouble. Ya might wanna get out before anything happens to ya. Jus' saying. For your own safety."

Okay, so when the Sandaime said the villagers didn't like Naruto, Obito wasn't expecting it to be _this_ blatant. "You know," He said conversationally, "I think you should just keep to your own business. Just saying. For your own safety."

The man grunted and slinked away, but not before a parting "Don't say I didn't warn you, boy."

Many of the surrounding civilian parents glared at the pair. Obito ignored their looks. "Naruto. Let's go." He said, pulling his... brother along.

* * *

The walk back to their dingy apartment was long and awkward. As the Uchiha struggled to open the door, he decided that as soon as he got the funds, they were going to move out. Even his old place had been better than here. It had hot water, for example.

When they finally got into the apartment, Naruto let loose. "I don't _know_ why they hate me so much! I've never done anything to them!" He wiped a few traitorous tears off his reddening face.

"Um." So Obito wasn't good at comforting pre-pubescent demon containers. Or, for that case, any little kid. He put an arm around the jinchuriki awkwardly. "You don't deserve any of that." He agreed.

Naruto froze, coming to a sudden realization. "Do you know why they hate me?" The boy asked.

Obito choked. How was he going to get out of this? The old man had told him specifically _not_ to tell Naruto anything about the Fox or about his parents... but he didn't want to _lie_ to the kid...

"Yeah, I do." He replied bluntly, then added quickly, "Which is why I know for sure those guys were crazy. There is _no_ way they would blame you for something like that if they weren't."

Naruto didn't seem convinced. "_Why_ do they hate me?"

"I... I can't tell you. Not yet anyways- I'll tell you when you're older." Obito cringed as he said it. That was like... the worst excuse ever. Naruto seemed to notice this, as he made an angry sound and ran out of the room to the bedroom, shutting the door angrily.

Well, shit. He was going to have to find some way to make it up to the kid...

Naruto stared at the pile in the middle of the living room. Bottles upon bottles of hair dye... a bag of onions? What the _hell_?

"Uh... niisan? What is this _for_?"

Obito grinned widely. "Kid, I'm going to teach how to be the best prankster this village has ever had. Other than myself, of course."

The blonde jinchuriki stared at him. "Pranks...?" He asked skeptically. "Eh... _you're_ a prankster? I'm pretty sure I can do better... _if_ I actually did that kind of stuff! Ha, don't listen to Iruka-sensei or the old man, I _never_ play pranks!"

"Heh... back in the day... I turned Ka- Wolf's hair pink. For the _entire week_."

"N-no way..." Naruto's jaw dropped. He had played his fair share of tricks on his ANBU guardian- or tried to, at least. Every single prank- every bucket, every tack... nothing _worked_. The only time Wolf had been caught in the prank was when the ANBU felt sorry for Naruto and purposely let himself get doused in water. But pink hair- for a week!- on _Wolf_... that was a trick only a master prankster could do! "R-really?"

"Why would I lie? Besides, you can ask Wolf yourself!" Obito winked. "Besides, by the end of _my_ lessons, even _you_ can get one over him!" ….Maybe. Kakashi probably got better in the past decade, but Naruto didn't have to know that.

* * *

Iruka Umino walked into the classroom, humming as he walked. He was unaware of the two pair of eyes- one pair black, the other bright blue- watching him as he opened the door into his first class of the day.

"Do you have it?" A voice whispered.

A bag was held up.

"Good. Let's get this started."

Iruka took a look at his classroom, making sure there was nothing out of place. Every student was present; even Sasuke had returned from his unexpected stint in the hospital following his clan's massacre. He took a close look at his desk. Nothing on his chair and only his usual paperwork covering the table.

He turned to face his class. "Good morning!" He announced happily. "As you all know, we will be taking an exam on the chakra makeup of human bodies today, so I hope you studied!"

As Iruka passed out the exam packets, he noticed that Naruto had a look on his face. A very familiar look, in fact- one that he recognized as the tell tale sign that the boy had a prank set somewhere very close.

"Don't even think about it." He whispered. Naruto looked at him innocently. Iruka sighed.

It was because of that that when the Academy teacher returned to his desk, he took the time to check his seat. "Naruto, I believe you left something here?" He said, holding up a bright pink whoopie cushion.

Somewhere on top of the Academy roof, Obito face palmed.

Naruto turned a rather dark shade of pink. "Uh- that isn't mine, Iruka-sensei!" He yelped, "I didn't even get up from my seat or anything- it can't be me!"

Obito sighed. Had _nobody_ taught the kid the value of a good poker face? It was too obvious that the kid was behind the prank.

"Stay after class, Naruto."

The boy sulked in his seat.

* * *

"Well, that went well." Obito said sarcastically.

"He knew I did it! How? I _know_ he didn't see me!" Naruto said angrily.

"Kid..." The Uchiha rolled his eyes. "I'll show you the _proper_ way to do things."

* * *

Mizuki Touji raised an eyebrow at the candied apple on his desk.

"Heh. I guess some kids still have some respect for their teachers." He said to himself, examining the sugary treat. It was wrapped up in a bright orange paper and bright red inside. The pale haired man shrugged. It looked alright, so he put it in his pack and headed back to his apartment.

As he walked, he caught a glimpse of bright orange and sneered. The Kyuubi brat, with some idiot the demon had tricked into being near him.

Unbeknownst to him, the pair high fived each other triumphantly as soon as he passed by. The sensei had bought it, and they had gotten rid of that extra onion that had been lying in the kitchen for weeks, seeing how nobody wanted to eat it.

A few days later, a few chuunins woke up with glitter all over their body. Attempts to get the damned substance off were to no avail- it was as if someone had glued it to their body.

Anko Mitarashi vowed revenge on the pranksters when she realized that her whole wardrobe of clothing had been dyed bright pink. She reached over and took a dango stick from the brat- what was his name? Naruto, or something? Good kid- he and that other one, treating her to dango. The woman chomped on her stick furiously. Naruto shot a nervous look at his partner in crime, who shrugged. Hopefully, they can get on her good side before she finds out.

Ibiki Morino stared into the mirror blankly. Someone had decided that he looked better with hair and had stuck a wig on his head as he slept. A bright yellow wig sticking out in every direction, at that. At least it wasn't stuck on.

On a bright orange piece of paper stuck on the side of the large wig, there was a short note written in messy, childish writing.

"Enjoy your new hair!"

He stared at the paper blankly, not knowing what to make of it. Eventually, he threw it in the garbage, along with his unexpected... present.

* * *

A few days later, Kakashi Hatake woke up with a head of pink hair.

He wasn't very surprised. _Obito..._ He remembered this from his younger days, back when Team Minato still existed. Obito had gotten one up on him _that_ time, but now?

Heh. The ANBU had noticed them as they climbed up the apartment building- he didn't survive all those years in the Corps by being a sound sleeper. Even if they were as sneaky as Obito and his protege.

"Obito." He called out. "I know you're there. You _do_ realize that I let you this time, right?"

A shorter, dark haired chuunin pulled himself up to the window and frowned unhappily. "Damn. I was hoping that I haven't lost my touch."

"It's not you. It's me."

"Eh...?"

Kakashi turned around with a sigh. "Obito... things have changed. I'm not the same person I was ten years ago. Neither are Gai, Asuma, or any of our old generation. But you haven't- you're still the same as you were all those years ago."

The other shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, just making sure here, I'm still a really awesome prankster right? It's just because you got really badass in the last ten years and I haven't caught up. _Yet_." He stressed.

"Sure. You could have gotten away with the pink hair trick if I was still thirteen. But I'm not- not anymore."

Obito came to a sudden realization. "Wait- I _knew_ that whole- tossing and turning thing was too much of a coincidence!"

"_What_ are you talking about?" The ANBU asked innocently.

"You _know_ what I'm talking about! Whenever I tried to see your face, you would just- completely turn over! And when I got to the other side, you would turn back!"

"Well, Obito, I had no idea that you were so interested in my face!"

"No, I'm not! I mean, yeah, but not in that way!"

Kakashi chuckled. "Anyways," He said, changing the subject, "How's Naruto going? I see that you two are... bonding well enough..."

The Uchiha replied, "Well, the kid's alright- almost reminds me of..."

"Yourself?"

"...Yeah. Hey, do you know what's with the whole... not telling him _anything_ about the Nine Tales or his parents thing? I mean, he's gonna find out eventually, why not now?"

"I don't know for sure myself. It is the Sandaime's call, after all. But rules are rules... however, I have told him a little about Sensei. Just don't be too specific. Now..." Kakashi paused. "_Please_ get out of my apartment."

* * *

Somewhere in Amegakure, there was a man in a mask.

Once, he was known as Obito Uchiha. Not anymore- he was nobody now; his favored alias being that of his old teacher, Madara Uchiha.

He was thinking. More specifically, about the strange encounter he had in the Uchiha Massacre with a younger version of himself.

Being a logical man, his first thought had been Orochimaru, the treacherous snake. The Sannin _was_ known for his experimentations after all, and it might be possible that the man had created a clone of some sort, similar to the infants he had injected with Senju DNA.

But then there was the question. Why would the man seek to duplicate a failure? Obito Uchiha was not a prodigy by any means- at least, not during his stint as a Konoha shinobi- and possessed no special abilities that might be of interest to the snake. His half-rate Sharingan was nothing special.

Unless... Orochimaru had discovered the true identity of the man behind the mask. But that was very unlikely, seeing how 'Madara's' very existence was only known to a select few of the Akatsuki. Orochimaru was not one of them. The only two alive who knows of his past was himself and Zetsu.

That lead only to more questions. It seemed like the best way to get answers... is from the source.

He's going to have to pay this... Obito... a visit.

**A/N: Well, sorry for the long wait. I completely redid this chapter after realizing the initial characterization was completely wrong (hopefully, it seems more realistic now). Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please read and review! The next chapter will probably begin with a timeskip.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**A Dark Encounter**

In the ever raining village of Amegakure- the appropriately named "Village Hidden in the Rain"- there was a building.

It wasn't what one would call imposing. In fact, it was the very opposite, discreetly blending into the background of the busy village with ease. The villagers did not know of its existence, walking past nonchalantly on their busy ways. Some of the village's shinobi knew about the building, but it was only the elite, most trusted forces under the kage who knew of its true nature.

Under that unassuming reddish brown roof was some of the shinobi world's most feared and powerful missing nin. It was spoken if in the dark gathering rooms of the ANBU corps, where rumors spread among the deadliest of Ame nin like wildfire. A chance glimpse of a man with- get this, _glowing green_ eyes and a face mask that obscured all other features. On another day, a large man with a hunchback, extreme enough to the point of deformity.

There were others as well, all dressed in black cloaks with red clouds. _Akatsuki_, the veteran ANBU muttered. None of them knew of their purpose, but their lord and his angel knew of their existence and allowed them to stay, so it wasn't any of their business to wonder.

Truth is, that building was simply one of the many Akatsuki hideouts located hidden around the country, albeit the main headquarters. Amegakure and Akatsuki shared a leader- the powerful shinobi known only as Pein, who was constantly accompanied by his beautiful blue haired angel. Only a select few knew the truth, all of them Akatsuki.

Pein, or Leader-sama as he was known to his suboardinates, was only a pawn in the hands of a much older and powerful being.

Two of them were the man himself, along with Konan, his so-called "angel". Another was Zetsu, the mysterious half-man, half-plant creature who wandered the halls without any seeming purpose. Kakuzu and Sasori, both long lasting members if the organization, had probably guessed the truth at some point. But the last was also Akatsuki's newest member.

Itachi Uchiha. Murderer of his entire clan, slaughtering every one of his family without mercy- all but his younger brother. Only thirteen years old, and already a S-ranked missing nin. It was obvious why even some of his fellow Akatsuki members eyed him warily at times.

The man himself- boy, really- walked purposely through the dank halls of the headquarters, stopping at a glimpse of something large and green. Another glance ascertained him of the other's identity- there were not many walking Venus Fly Traps in the shinobi world, after all.

"Zetsu-san." He said, standing still as the other turned around slowly and started at him with unblinking, mismatched eyes. "Do you know of Tobi's whereabouts?"

Zetsu regarded him for a moment before the light half of the bisected creature spoke. "Tobi is on an assignment right now, Itachi-san. He will be back within a few days."

The Uchiha raised a disbelieving eyebrow. That would not have sounded strange to most other members of Akatsuki- Tobi was Zetsu's hyperactive assistant, constantly bumbling himself into trouble, yet somehow, always coming out unharmed. It was no surprise that his superior would have sent him off on a long term mission just to stop him from rubbing on someone's nerves to the point that the kid would be left as a stain in the carpet.

But Itachi knew better. Under the goofy, childish veneer of Tobi lies a master manipulator, an extremely powerful shinobi that was still spoken of fearfully even decades after his supposed death.

Madara Uchiha. One of the two founders of Konoha, the legendary Uchiha with the power to enslave the mighty Kyuubi and the cursed Mangekyo Sharingan, eyes supposedly taken forcefully from his own brother. Almost a century old, but still retaining the majority of his abilities.

And for _him_ to be away... That meant something bigger than Itachi thought was happening. Most likely, the man was on a mission to accomplish something he did not trust his pawns to do correctly. And... If Itachi's suspicions were correct- and they were, finely honed by years as an ANBU captain- it had something to do with the very reason he was searching for the ancient Uchiha.

Namely, the strange Uchiha boy that his mentor had inexplicably spared on the night of the Uchiha Massacre.

Itachi knew every living member of the Uchiha clan- it was not a boast, as the heir of the clan head, he was expected to know every detail of his clan by heart- and the boy (he ignored the fact that the other was his own age) was _not_ one of them. Yet, he had displayed Sharingan. That left only two possibilities. The boy was a previously unknown bastard of the family, or he wasn't considered one of its living members.

The latter was impossible, or at least much more unlikely than the first. No Uchiha genin (which he assumed the boy was, factoring in his age and overall lack of experience) had gone missing in the pasts decade. So, the boy was a bastard. And considering Madara's surprising interest in the genin, Itachi had a slight suspicion of the boy's father.

Itachi swallowed. For a moment, his internal self reeled in disgust. _Who would have- he was at_ least_ seventy, could it still possible that..._ His outward expression stayed the same as always. The possibility, though horrifying to a teenage male like himself, seemed very likely. The boy even displayed one of the powers Itachi had thought only belonged to Madara himself- that of intangibility.

Briefly, he wondered what Madara planned for the boy. It was nothing good, he was sure of it.

Hundreds of miles away, the subject of his musings sneezed- both of them.

* * *

_Achoo! Achoo!_

Obito sneezed, rubbed his nose unconsciously, and rolled over. A beat. His eyes snapped open in horror and he spun toward the source of the second sneeze. But- he'd only sneezed _once! _Where di that second sneeze come from?

"I wouldn't scream if I were you." A familiar voice said conversationally from the window sill, as if he was asking about the weather instead of issuing a passive aggressive threat to someone he had been watching sleep for... Obito shut down that trail of thought.

The intruder was completely garbed in skintight black cloth, but his mask was what really gave his identity away. Not many people that Obito knew had orange masks, after all. Plus, that particular mask had haunted his dreams for the past few days.

"_You!" _He exclaimed in shock. "_How- why-_ What are you doing here? How did you get in?"

This was bad. Obito knew there had been a lot of ANBU guards surrounding his and Naruto's shared apartment, but the masked man had gotten in without so much of a peep from them. Which meant that either none of the elite ANBU corps had noticed the intruder or they had, but he had been too... Obito banished the thought, kicking it out of head. Kakashi was one of those ANBU, and he couldn't have gone down without a fight!

The shadowy form of the masked man detached from the window sill and landed quietly on the wooden floor, bringing himself a step closer to Obito. In response, the boy took a step back. "You should try to be a bit quieter." The man replied, unfazed. "You wouldn't want to wake anyone up, would you? Especially not the jinchuruki. Who knows what I'll have to do in order to keep him quiet?"

Obito shut up. Contrary to popular opinion, he _could_ think. If this guy really was Madara Uchiha- and even if he _wasn't_- he was powerful, definitely strong enough to completely destroy a thirteen year old Uchiha and his adopted jinchuruki brother without anyone else in the village noticing.

"Good. Now, I have some questions for you. It's in your best interest to answer them truthfully." His uninvited visitor tilted his mask purposefully toward the room where Naruto was snoring loudly, unaware of the danger mere feet away.

"W-what do you need to know?" Obito swallowed nervously. Not that he knew anything, he thought. He'd been out of the loop for what, a decade? Besides, maybe if he answered the man's questions, both Naruto and himself could get out of this situation alive and he could tell the old man.

A lone, blood red eye glinted in the depths of Madara's mask. "What exactly _are_ you?"

The younger Uchiha blinked. Eh...? "Um. I'm human? And well, I'm Obito Uchiha, but I guess you probably already know that..."

The eye narrowed. "Try again. The one you are claiming to be is long dead."

"I'm not lying!" Obito yelped, "I'm really Obito!" But wait... why would _Madara Uchiha_ be interested in a fai- someone like himself? But he shoved that thought of his head. He could wonder about that _after_ he's certain of his continued survival.

"How." It wasn't a question.

So Obito told him. Not everything, he wasn't that stupid- but enough to get the point across. He was on a mission when his Sharingan activated and he found himself a decade in the future. Madara seemed to know more about Obito than he would have thought, but even so, he wasn't going to just tell him about Kakashi or Rin that easily.

Unsurprisingly, Madara did not seem convinced. Even with the orange mask obscuring the man's features, Obito had the feeling that he was raising an eyebrow.

"Really." The elder man drawled disbelievingly. "I have to admit, you could have thought of a better story."

"It's true!"

Madara looked at him closely, and Obito resisted the urge to fidget. Finally, the Uchiha founder spoke. "Do you know of a man named Orochimaru?"

Orochimaru? Isn't that the guy who looked like he wanted punch Sensei in the face every time he saw him? He might be a Sannin, but there was no doubt that he was a Grade A asshole. The way he looked at the Uchiha kids... Obito shuddered involuntarily.

"Hn. I see." Madara replied. Obito coughed awkwardly, realizing that he must have blurted everything out loud... again. But the other man seemed more amused than anything else.

Which was why the man's next question came out of the blue. "Tell me," Madara asked, "What did the o-Hokage tell you happened to your team?"

Obito blinked. It wasn't an expected question... he had expected the masked weirdo to drill him about... well, he didn't know- village secrets? How he really was who he said he was? Anything but... information about himself. "He told me... well, everyone's... dead. Except Ka- one."

"So, he did, did he?" The older man drawled. "Was Kakashi there, may I ask? I'm sure he wouldn't want the Sandaime to be giving out his... secrets."

"Wait- how do you know about Kakashi?" And what the hell was he talking about _secrets?_

"He was, then." A single Sharingan eye stared at Obito, boring into his soul. "Did he tell you how Rin died?"

What. The. Hell. How did Madara Uchiha know about Rin and Kakashi? Screw that, _why_ would he know about them? None of them- Rin, Kakashi, and himself- seemed especially worthy of the attentions of some long dead Uchiha ancestor, them not being Uchiha's and himself being a... a failure, compared to the rest of his clan. His mouth suddenly went dry. What did that _bastard_ have to do with Rin's death?

"Kakashi told me she died on a mission." He forced out, setting anger filled eyes on the older Uchiha. "But- did... were you the one who killed her?"

There was a dead silence. Madara suddenly looked very dangerous- not that he didn't before, but now he looked positively murderous.

"You don't know _anything_." The older Uchiha hissed. "I would _never_ hurt her- not Rin."

Ignoring the strangeness of that reply- why would _Madara Uchiha_ care whether or not Rin lived?- Obito continued, driven by the rage he had been bottling up since his arrival in the strange new future.

"Why wouldn't you? I know what you did to Sensei and Kushina-san- what's so different about Rin?"

"Everything I've been doing- _everything_- it has _all_ been for _Rin!_"

Wait, what? Obito's jaw dropped. Madara- if that's who he really was- seemed to realize that he had gave out too much information and froze.

"Y-you..." The younger Uchiha choked out, "And Rin- _what_?"

The masked man looked at him steadily. After a few moments, he spoke, albeit in a calm, monotone voice. "I did not kill Rin. It was our- your teammate who did that." His black gloved hands clenched at his sides. "Se- Namikaze and Uzumaki were necessary sacrifices. They stood in the way of my plan, and for that, they had to die."

...Kakashi? _Kakashi_ killed Rin? He- he wouldn't... would he? He didn't have any reason to- and he and Obito _saved_ Rin, why would he _kill_her? He _promised_ Obito that he would look after her...

Obito stood for a moment, shellshocked by the revelations. It was at that moment that he realized something important- now that he thought about it, it was pretty obvious, what with everything he had learned about the masked man so far.

"You aren't Madara Uchiha." He stated.

"Hn." The masked man tilted his head. "You're right. I'm not him."

But if he wasn't Madara, who _was_ he? Obito stared hard at the orange mask as if he could discern the other's identity that way. It was then that he understood, that all the pieces fit together to make one unwanted answer.

The man knew about Obito's life. He knew about his teammates, even having some sick obsession with Rin, and his sensei as well. He didn't like the Uchiha Clan. And... he had said 'our' teammate before hastily changing his choice of words when referring to Kakashi. But there were only four people on his team, and Obito was pretty damn sure the masked man wasn't Rin or Sensei. Which left...

He swallowed, taking a look at the other man's mask- the orange mask with _one_ eyehole.

_The mission reports- Obito Uchiha, KIA, body never recovered- one Sharingan transplanted to one Kakashi Hatake_.

"You're me." Obito said, voice wavering. "You're _me_. But- _why? _Why would you- I- we do this? Why would we kill Sensei and Kushina-san... why would we kill the whole Uchiha Clan?"

The masked man- _himself-_ turned around, and took off his mask.

Even with the messy black hair that covered nearly half of his face and the nasty looking scars, it was like looking into a mirror- albeit, one that looked years older than himself. His missing eye was covered by a black eyepatch, and his mouth was twisted into a frown.

"I am going to change this world." The older him said. "I want to make a better world, where nobody dies, where everyone is _happy_. Everyone would be alive, even our parents. Kakashi's parents. Rin. Sensei. There wouldn't be any more fighting, not any more. There would be _peace_."

Obito blinked. "That's-!" Wonderful? Impossible? Stupid? "That's crazy." He ended weakly. "You can't do that, nobody could- You can't_force_ people to do that!"

"I can. I will."

They met each other's eyes for a moment, the same person separated by a decade of experience. Obito- the younger one- looked away first.

"Why would you tell me this?" He asked, forcing the words out through a throat that had suddenly gone dry. "Aren't you worried that I'm going to tell the old man? Because I will, you know, this isn't _right_, killing people just so you can force everyone into being something they don't want to be."

The older Uchiha looked disappointed for a moment. "If that's your choice, so be it. But... I wonder, have you noticed?"

Noticed... what? That's when it hit him.

Even Naruto couldn't sleep through the last hour or so of shouting, arguing, and overall commotion that had taken place in the room right next to his. Yet, no blonde kid had charged through the door, demanding as to what was going on.

"What did you do to him." He growled.

"Don't worry. I did nothing to him."

"But then-" Obito paused, then took in his surroundings with a keen eye. Everything was- well, he wasn't sure _how_ to describe it, but it wasn't_real_. Instead of the sharp corners and steady lines of reality, his room was a blur. There was no clear definition between his bed, or the window, or even the wall. It was almost like he was in a-

"I'm _dreaming_?"

"Hn. Close, but I'm real, and so was our... conversation. I couldn't risk you trying to alert anyone to our conversation, could I? But it seems now... that this dream is ending."

And it was. Obito's new desk disappeared as if it had never been there in the first place as the dreamworld began to collapse on itself. Even the masked man seemed to disappear into the shadows.

"And... Obito. One final thing." A single blood red eye regarded him with amusement. "Do you know what the best thing about dreams is?"

Obito grasped desperately for something to anchor himself to, to no avail. The last thing he saw before falling into darkness was an orange mask, and then he heard:

"You don't remember them when you wake up."

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki shook his older brother awake, an unhappy expression on his face.

"Ow- ow, I'm awake, I'm awake!" Obito yelped, "Stop shaking me!"

"Nii-san! I'm late for school- you didn't wake up on time!"

Huh? That was weird... Obito always woke up at dawn, a common trait of the fire-aligned Uchiha Clan. For him to sleep past meant that he must have been _really_ exhausted last night... but he wasn't. He didn't even have a mission, all he did was take Naruto to the Academy and then grocery shopping.

Strangely, it didn't feel like he slept last night. Obito yawned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and peering cautiously outside, adjusting his sleep-deprived eyes to the sudden light. As he got up, he realized that his pajamas were completely soaked through with sweat. He must have had a really bad nightmare, he thought. Good thing he didn't remember anything about it.

All he remembered, really, was the red glow of a familiar Sharingan eye.

Little did he know, if he had activated his Sharingan right then, in front of the mirror, he would have seen the exact same eyes as those in his dreams.

* * *

Madara was back- or rather, Tobi was. The majority of the Akatsuki who were still sleeping at the time of his return were rudely awakened by an obnoxiously cheerful cry of 'Good morning!'. Which was why he was being given quite a lot of dirty looks, most of them from Kakuzu's new partner. Itachi didn't know the man's name and did not plan to anytime soon. He had a feeling that this particular shinobi wouldn't last any longer than his previous ones, given Kakuzu's penchant for killing his partners.

Itachi approached the masked man and tapped him on the back cautiously. "Tobi. You are done with your errand?"

Tobi spun around dizzily, his orange mask coming into close proximity to Itachi's face, causing the Uchiha to back up slightly. "Yup! All done~ Everything went better than expected- Zetsu-san's gonna be so proud of me!"

"I... see." As Itachi turned around and began walking away, he heard a low whisper.

"We'll have to have a talk, Itachi-kun. There's been a new development."

But when he turned around, all he saw was Tobi, the incapable buffoon, dancing around childishly, arms waving about, edging dangerously to one of Konan's prized vases.

_Crash!_

"Whoops! Sorry Konan-san!"

* * *

The boy was Obito Uchiha- or at least, he believed it with every shred of his being. He could not have been one of Orochimaru's creations- he knew things that the snake could not have known. Though his tale of time travel had been hard to believe, he had to wonder. Was the power of time travel truly possible with his Sharingan? He had experimented with his eye during his time with Madara, and that particular power had never came up.

Or maybe, it was a power that only worked when both eyes were used together.

A single blood red eye narrowed behind the orange mask.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the long time between updates. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, though there might not be another update for sometime due to finals. However, I feel there might be somethings that need clarification in this chapter.**

**Obito gains, or rather regains the Mangekyou Sharingan after his dream encounter. He kinda needed them for plot reasons, though he won't notice them because he has little need for his Sharingan at this point in time. For the same reason, his eye sight won't be damaged. The reason for him regaining the eyes is because he has now encountered both of his eyes in the future, both _activated_ for Mangekyou Sharingan (though Kakashi doesn't know he has it), which caused some effects for his own.**

**In Chapter 602 (I had to look it up again to make sure I wasn't imagining it), Madara says something about Obito surviving being a miracle and that it was almost like he had 'passed through' the rubble. It seems like his particular activity activated even before he _got_ the Mangekyou, which is strange, but is also the reason that Obito can turn intangible (though only at times of extreme peril and for very short periods of time) in this fic before getting the eyes. Artistic license is taken for this... Here's hoping that Kishimoto doesn't retcon it.**

**For those who thought it was strange that 'Madara' suddenly decided to tell all- he didn't have anything to lose, because Obito would forget everything in the dream when he woke up. Basically, the whole confrontation was for him to gain more information.**

**Again, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Title: **Revelations and Reunions

**Rating: **T

**Summary: **Life goes on.

* * *

Obito had always enjoyed helping out the elderly. He helped them carry their bags, rescue cats from trees, paint houses… but his tendencies for doing good deeds were also a great factor in his constant tardiness. Kakashi always scolded him for it, but it wasn't something he could help.

So what if he had to get to his team meeting on time? He was running a few minutes early… and Akiyama-san's cat was stuck up a tree- Obito _had_ to help.

That, at least, hadn't changed. He was walking down the street to the grocery store- the owners always charged Naruto insanely high prices, so Obito was going to have to have a _talk_ with them - when he saw an elderly woman making slow progress on the street, stumbling under the weight of her shopping bags.

A few minutes later, she was thanking him profusely as he grabbed the two bags of turnips and carried them along- they _were_ pretty heavy! Obito glowed under the praise. He was more used to jeers and scorn than gratitude and compliments. That, at least, was one good thing about the future. Nobody mocked him anymore. Bad thing is, everyone who did was already dead, or had completely forgotten about him.

Then Obito looked- really _looked_- at the old lady's face, and froze. There were a few extra wrinkles and she seemed to have shrunk with age… but he _knew_ her.

Due to his frequent helping of old people, he knew the names and faces of all the elderly persons in the village. The number of which wasn't actually that much. It was rare for shinobi to survive to such an advanced age, and civilians made up only slightly more than half of the village population.

It was Maki-san. It had only been weeks ago for him when he had cheerfully helped her prune her fruit trees. But to her, it must have been years.

Obito swallowed. He liked Maki-san; she had chased away a couple of over eager bullies from him when he was still attending the civilian school, and then had treated him to cookies and hot milk. She had regaled him with tales of her life as shinobi- though she had only ever advanced to chunin rank.

There was no recognition on her wrinkly, sun-darkened face when she looked at him. And… that was it, right? The world had moved on without him, and anyone who really cared about his existence was either dead, had forgotten, or Kakashi.

They walked on in relative silence, with Maki-san telling him the directions to her home. He already knew them, of course. But no matter how desperately he wanted to tell her that he was _Obito_, that he was _alive_- he knew he couldn't.

First of all, the Sandaime had made him promise not tell anyone about his situation, other than those who already knew. Secondly, and his main motivation, was that Maki-san might think he was completely and utterly insane- that, or playing a cruel prank on her. After all, he didn't really have any proof.

"Boy, are you a shinobi?"

Obito blinked. Oh, she was talking to him. "Ye-" He began on pure habit, before remembering the cover story that the old man had drilled into him. "No," He said quickly, "I've always wanted to be one, though. I came from one of the trading villages up north, and they always talked about how cool shinobi were. My dad might have been one, I don't know- I never knew him, but-"

He shut up. Crap. First time he tried to keep up his cover story, and he made the first mistake the old man had warned him about- telling too much.

But Maki-san didn't seem to notice, just hemming and hawing as she listened. Finally, she talked. "Kids these days," She huffed, "Each generation getting worse and worse. This village is going downhill, I tell you."

Eh…? Should he be happy that she had completely ignored his mistake, or concerned that Maki-san had gotten senile over the past few years?

"Ah," Obito nodded sagely, or at least tried to. At least, the kids in Naruto's class seemed to be complete screw-ups, at least compared to his own generation. But again, _his_ generation had been groomed to become killers by the time these kids graduated from the Academy. They hadn't had the time to fool around.

A few more minutes of silence passed, and then Maki-san spoke up again. "Last generation wasn't much better," She informed him. "Most of those kids just grew up an' had little copies of themselves."

Obito just nodded. That was actually a pretty scary thought. Did that mean that there was a mini-Gai running around, with huge eyebrows and a shiny bowl-cut haircut of his own? Kami, he hoped not.

"You look familiar." She announced, and fixated Obito with a stare. A few seconds passed before she looked away, a strange knowing look in her eye. "You one of them Uchihas, or something? But you can't be. They're all gone, 'cept for the little boy over at the Academy."

"My father was an Uchiha," He 'explained'. "I never knew him, so I don't know who he actually was. I came over to find him, but the time I got here, the whole clan was… _gone_."

Which, of course, was the polite way of saying that every other member of his clan, bar two, was dead- cut down by one of their own.

The old woman hmph'ed. "I don' like to speak ill of the dead, but… I've only ever met a few decent Uchiha. Though… you remind me of one of 'em."

Obito froze. Was she talking about _him_? "Thank you?" He hazarded.

"He was a pretty good kid," She ignored him and continued, eyes misted over with memories of years past. "Stupid, but good."

He forced down a squawk of indignation. Okay, so he wasn't a genius like Kakashi- doesn't mean he was dumb! Hell, he was fourth in his class academically… on that one day when only four people came to school. But _still_. Besides, what he lacked in some fields, he made up in others. He was _awesome_ at the Uchiha Clan techniques… in the way that every other Uchiha was. Damn.

"Don't take that the wrong way," Maki-san interrupted, and Obito sheepishly realized that he mustn't have been very successful at hiding his indignation. "Everyone was stupid at his age. Just, most people grow out of it." Her expression darkened. "Shinobi die young, boy. He just didn't get to grow up."

"Oh."

"I liked the kid. We all did."

"We? Who's 'we'?" Wait, so did he have like a… secret fan club way back then, and he just didn't know?

"We, as in the elders of the village." Obito deflated slightly. He had been really hoping that the 'we' had included a certain girl he knew, not _old people_. Not that there was anything wrong with that…

He was struck by a horrible thought. Maki-san, Hayashi-san, the old lady he helped carry the luggage for on his way to chunin exams, the old man who gave him a pat on the head and called him a 'good boy'… they all thought he was _dead_.

"He just left on a mission one day, and his team came back without him." The old woman continued, taking advantage of Obito's sudden silence. "We couldn't believe it at first. It was all very sad. Some people cried. Sato-san closed down his shop for a week in his honor."

Oh. Okay, _now_, he just felt awful. Obito's stomach churned uncomfortably. If he didn't know better, he would think that Maki-san was doing this on purpose. They did all that because of him…? "It… It sounds like a lot of people liked him."

"Yes. More than he thought, probably." She replied thoughtfully. "Not a lot of people pay attention to us elderly people. Retired shinobi tend to have no family. We're tools. Once we become useless, we get thrown out. But that kid _did _care."

Obito's mouth felt dry, and he coughed nervously. "If- if somehow, he was still alive, and hiding out for some reason… what would you do?" That was completely not suspicious. Not suspicious at all.

"Funny question to ask." Maki-san remarked. "But y'know what I would do? I would go righ' over and give him a big wallop over his head for never tellin' us the truth. I'd get all us old people and rush 'im."

He gulped.

Her expression softened. "An' then, after that… we'll talk. Like old times. Make him explain how he can live for eight years without aging a day."

Alright, at least she _wouldn't_ kill him if she fou- Obito blinked. "Wait, what-?" He choked out.

Maki-san gave him a sly wink. "Only someone with shit for brains would fall for that. I'm seventy-three years old, _kid_. I din't get this old by being dumb. "

"How did you-?"

"I've known you since you were seven, and you haven't learned to lie any better since then." The old woman cackled. "Thanks for helpin' me with my bags, kid, m' back just isn't the way it used to be. You want to bring those groceries in for me?"

Obito blinked. Wait, they're already here? But he swore- He shook his head. Must have been his imagination…

"What are you waiting for? Eight years not long enough for you?"

He hurried up and inside. Maki-san's living room hadn't changed a bit, he decided. The same off-pink ceiling color, the stained wallpaper, and the room still packed with flowers of every shape and size. And- was that the familiar warm smell of ginger cookies?

"Wait, so you know I'm… me? Why didn't you call me out on it earlier?"

"I like seeing you squirm." She deadpanned. "Now, how 'bout you take a seat and I'll get you a cookie. Then tell me where you got the bright idea to not tell me that you're alive."

Obito sat down with a grin on his face. Maki-san hadn't changed a bit. Maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised that she saw through him so easily- she always had, be it his crush on Rin, or the missing pie from the pantry.

It was good to see that some things never changed, even in a time when both Sensei and Rin were dead, and Kakashi wasn't an utter asshole.

* * *

"Hokage-sama?" For a man wearing an expressionless, porcelain mask, Sarutobi decided, Ox did look desperate. "You have a visitor."

"Ah." He nodded absentmindedly, putting away his stack of endlessly multiplying paperwork. "Who is it?"

"It- It's Hoshi Maki-san, Hokage-sama. "

His pen clattered to the ground, falling from suddenly nerveless fingers. He paled, blood draining from his face. There was only one reason why _she_ would come to see him… and it concerned the temporal anomaly who had appeared in his village a few weeks earlier.

Nobody wanted to be the focus of Hoshi Maki's fury, not even the legendary Sandaime of Konoha. Logic said that she was a retired chunin of no threat to himself, a S-ranked shinobi and number one in command of his village.

But logic had never really applied to Hoshi Maki.

"Let her in." He said finally, with the sound of a man going to meet his executioner.

* * *

It was a well-known fact in Konoha's ANBU community that ANBU Wolf could be found at the memorial stone every morning. Many of his subordinates gossiped heavily about the reason why. A recently deceased family member? A dead girlfriend? A lost lover?

None of those made sense. For one, the man had been going there for _years_- according to witnesses, for almost a decade. Even the most sentimental, the most squeamish shinobi could only keep it up for months- and Kakashi Hatake could not be considered emotional by any means. Hell, the man had killed more people than almost anyone else in ANBU ranks, with an almost frightening ease.

He was a cold, efficient killer- and, as it was often whispered in secret, a fucking psycho. Various former members of his squad told horror stories about assassination missions on children- on _kids_- and how the man slaughtered them without a second thought. He was one of the most veteran ANBU members, and definitely the youngest out of them.

Most ANBU members stayed- survived, rather- for only a year or two. It was a job that most people only left in a body bag, or as a gibbering wreck. Wolf had been in for six. It was a quiet sentiment that one day, the crazy fucker would just go home and hang himself. Of course, the man's subordinates- Tenzou and Tiger, in particular- made sure that anyone who voiced that particular sentiment… well, wouldn't do it again for a very long time.

So when Wolf hadn't shown up to HQ one day, and Boar had reported that he wasn't at the memorial stone… it was understandable that one of the newer recruits had blurted out, "Holy _shit_. He fucking _did_ it."

After all, he _had_ been acting strangely the past few weeks, after he returned from a S-ranked mission that had landed most of his squad members in the hospital. Thinking of it… it was also the day Itachi, that little shit, had cut down every damn person in his clan. Wolf had a Sharingan- maybe there was a connection?

But he wasn't in his apartment either, or any of his usual haunting spots. Tenzou was the one who finally found him, sitting cross legged in front of a grave in the Konoha Cemetery.

He didn't seem to notice their presence for a few moments. "Why are all of you here?" He asked, still staring at the gravestone.

"Sir, you missed the meeting this morning."

"Eh?" Kakashi turned his head in apparent confusion. "Ah, there must have been a mix-up. I have already turned in my resignation from the Corps to the Hokage-sama, effective yesterday. I am officially a jounin of the village."

There was a stunned silence.

"Is this a fucking joke?" Hawk erupted, "_You're_ quitting ANBU?"

Though everyone else stayed quiet, Hawk was speaking what was on all of their minds. Kakashi Hatake _not_ being part of the Corps was like… Ichiraku's closing down shop, or something. Say what you will about his mental state, but he had been a mentor to the majority of the current ANBU.

"Yes." Kakashi said simply. "As much as it's possible for anyone to leave ANBU, anyways." He got up and stretched nonchalantly. "Congratulations, Hawk. You've been promoted to Captain. Now… I'm going to have to tell someone something I never wanted to have to tell them."

Nobody stopped him as he walked off, hands in his pockets. Hawk's senbon had fallen out of his mouth.

Now that Kakashi was no longer blocking the gravestone with his body, it was easy to see what was engraved upon it. Tenzou took a look.

_Rin Nohara, _it read. _Beloved daughter, teammate, friend._

* * *

"I never told you how Rin died." Kakashi began, saying each word like it was being dragged out of him. Which was understandable, considering his circumstances.

Obito blinked. And again. "Uh, no. All you told me was that it was on a mission gone wrong. Why are you bringing this up again?"

He sighed. "That... That wasn't everything. There was a lot that I didn't tell you- and... I suppose, I never wanted to tell you. But you deserve the truth. So, it's your decision. Do you want me to tell you, or not? I'm going to warn you in advance... you would be happier if you didn't know."

"Eh? What kind of question is that? Of course I want to know the truth!"

"Are you sure?" Kakashi's single dark eye stared at him seriously. "This isn't simple black and white. You can live the rest of your life happy, not knowing. It won't affect you."

Obito sweatdropped. "Wow, Kakashi... that's way too dramatic, even for you. But seriously. Tell me. I want to know."

He nodded his head in grudging acceptance. "Alright. But... try not to take judgement until after I am done."

"It was a year after you- our mission to Kannabi Bridge. Rin and I were sent on a surveillance mission to Kirigakure- Sensei did not come with us, as he had recently became the Yondaime. It was supposed to be simple. It wasn't. A day before we were supposed to arrive at our mission destination, the two of us were ambushed, by a squad of high-ranked Kirigakure shinobi. They were jounin and ANBU-ranked, at the very least. Rin and I... I was a jounin, and her a chunin. We... were no match for them."

"But... it was odd. The focus of all of the shinobi's attacks were on me, and only me. None of them went after Rin at all. It was like they were trying to miss on purpose."

"Wait, so they didn't hurt Rin at all? Then how come she died?"

"I'll... get to that. Anyways, I was extremely exhausted at that point. I had your Sharingan, and that was probably what saved my life up to that point- but it wasn't enough. That was when I realized..." His lone eye darkened. "They were after Rin. They needed her for something, that much I knew. They kept talking about how they couldn't damage her, couldn't hurt her... they needed something from her, that only she could give them."

"You... what are you going at?"

"The Nohara's aren't that well-known in Konoha. I don't think there are anymore of them- Rin's last relatives died in the Kyuubi attack. But even then, they were few... and very secretive. Obito, you're an Uchiha. You should know better than most why a couple of enemy nin would go after a specific shinobi."

"Are you saying that Rin had a bloodline limit? That the Kiri nin wanted her for that?"

"Yes. I don't know for sure what it was... but it was important to the Kiri shinobi. At that point in the fight, both Rin and I were extremely exhausted. We couldn't last much longer before I was knocked unconscious or killed, and Rin captured by enemy shinobi. We had to make a decision."

"Kakashi..." Hell, he couldn't be saying what Obito thought he was saying. "You...?"

"To answer your earlier question... Rin wasn't killed by the Kirigakure shinobi." His eye hardened. "I... was the one who killed Rin."

There was a dead silence.

Finally, Obito snarled. "Kakashi, you fucking _bastard_. I told you to protect Rin with your life- and- and you just- There could have been another way! There has to be be!" He was standing up now, fists clenched bloodlessly white at his sides. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"I _was_ protecting her." Kakashi stated emotionlessly. "The two of us couldn't last much longer. We couldn't let the enemy shinobi get their hands on Rin- and we both knew it. Rin understood what we would have to do for the sake of the village. Konoha cannot afford other villages having access to our clan's bloodline limits."

Obito punched him. Kakashi looked like he had been expecting it, but didn't even try to dodge it. As a result, the punch connected fully, slamming into Kakashi's unprotected nose. He covered it quickly with one hand, but Obito could see the dark stain spreading out from underneath his fingers. For a moment, he stared at his fist in horror, wondering whether or not he should apologize... then he remembered that Kakashi had killed _Rin_- and he was furious again.

"Obito..." The jonin started.

"To hell with that! You- You placed the village before your teammate. You could have found another way- to get Rin out alive, even at the expense at your own life. You should have!"

"Trust me, Obito. If there was _anything_ I could do- even if I had to sacrifice myself in the process- in order to get her out of there alive... I would have. I owed it to you, to Rin, to Sensei... to myself. But sometimes... there just isn't."

Obito glared. "You could have kept fighting."

"It was five to one odds, if not more. Look, Obito... See it from my perspective. Fine, maybe we could have kept fighting. Maybe we could have taken down a few more enemy nin. But I was already half-dead at that point, and as soon as they finished me off, they would have taken Rin. Just like our mission at Kannabi Bridge, only there would be nobody left to rescue her. And... captivity wouldn't have been fun. Their shinobi would have tortured her for all the information she could give, then turned her over to be dissected, to be experimented on. Anything would have been better than that."

He swallowed, and slumped down into his chair. As much as he hated to admit it... Kakashi was right. He did have no other choice. As an Uchiha, it had always been drilled into him that he could never let enemy shinobi get a hold of him, or his eyes. There had been oh so many horror stories about unfortunate uncle Shiranui, or cousin Fukiya...

"Was... Was it quick? Her death, I mean." He asked finally.

"...Yes. She... wasn't alive for more than a few seconds."

"That's... good." Obito bowed his head. "But- how the hell are _you_ still here? I would have thought that the enemy nin would have been pretty pissed at you for... doing what you did."

Kakashi had a distant look in his eyes. "I don't know."

"What the hell do you mean you don't know?"

"I fell unconscious from chakra exhaustion immediately afterwards. I never expected to wake up- I was surrounded by extremely angry Kirigakure shinobi who wanted to retrieve Rin's body for further study. But I did. And when I did... I was the only one alive. Someone- or something- had ripped the enemy shinobi apart. Their bodies were mangled and broken, like they had been killed by a monster. But whoever, or whatever did it... they left me alive. Whatever did it... they left Rin alone."

"Wait, what?" Obito blinked. "No offense, but... are you sure you didn't hit your head or something? I mean... that doesn't sound like something a random enemy shinobi would do."

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." Kakashi shrugged. "Either way, I woke up still alive, and Rin's body was still there."

"You- You brought her back, right? Her body, at least."

Kakashi nodded. "Wait, so she has a plot in the Konoha Cemetery, right?" The other man nodded again. "Take me there. _Please._ I... I know she's gone. But... I guess... I just want to say goodbye to her- I never got a chance, before the rock got me." Obito knew his voice was cracking, but he didn't really care.

He knew Rin was gone, had known every since he had found himself in this insane future Konoha. But it had never really _hit_ him that- that _Rin_, the smiling girl with the brown hair and purple marks on her cheeks, the one who was so kind and so sweet and fixed him back up every time he got himself beaten up, the girl he _loved_... was dead. Obito would never see her again- or at least, not in the living world.

Kakashi Hatake had been the one to kill her, and that had made it so much worse. If it had been a faceless Kirigakure nin... or maybe bloodthirsty Rock shinobi... it would have been so easy to just _hate-_ to paint the murderer as a complete monster, as someone to focus his vengeance on. But... this was _Kakashi- _his teammate, his comrade, and- maybe, just maybe- his _friend_. He didn't want to kill Rin- he had said as such. And... it might not mean much, but he had looked sincere. He had had no other choice.

...If Obito had been in the same situation- to leave Rin to the enemy shinobi to be experimented on, to be tortured, to be cut open, or to give her a quick death- he would have made the same decision. And that was an awful thing to realize.

* * *

"Um... Hi, Rin. It's me. Obito- you know, your teammate... or I guess, your old teammate now. Yeah, I guess it must be pretty surprising to see me here- after all, I'm supposed to be under a few tons of rock, right?" He let out a slightly crazed giggle. "But... I'm not. I'm not sure why myself, but I'm alive and walking. And you're... dead."

Obito wiped his eyes. He had left his goggles at home, so at least he couldn't use _that_ excuse anymore. "Kakashi told me everything. I know that he was the one who killed you." He started conversationally-

And what _was_ that? A slight twitch out of the corner of his vision. Moments later, a squirrel ran out and scampered up a nearby tree trunk, and he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. It must have been his imagination.

"But... He explained why. It must have been a really screwed up situation, huh? And... I understand where he's coming from. I know why he did what he did. I'm not sure if you did before you died but... it was either _that_, or let the Kirigakure shinobi get their hands on you." His hands clenched. "And I guess... I don't blame him. I want to hope that there could have been another way, a way that the both of you could have gotten out alive... but I know now that sometimes, there are no other choices. I can't hate him for it- and I know that if you were still here, you wouldn't want me to hate him either."

"Everything's so- so _different_. I'm like... one of three living Uchiha now. Itachi- remember, that cute little kid who I took out for dango sometimes? Well, he went crazy- or _something_- but he murdered the whole clan, along with a weirdo claiming to be Madara Uchiha. He even tried to kill me." Obito shuddered. "I never liked my clan much, but I don't want them _dead_. Now, the only one left is my cousin, Sasuke- he's Itachi's brother- but apparently, he decided to turn into a complete Kakashi 2.0... at least, according to Naruto."

"I guess Kakashi probably already told you this but... Sensei had a kid. His name's Naruto- and I guess that's just like Sensei and Kushina-san, to name their kid after a _ramen topping_. He looks just like Sensei, but his personality is all Kushina-san." He grinned. "And guess what? I'm the kid's older brother now!" He pointed proudly at himself, smooshing the flower bouquet he brought in the process. "Oh, sorry. Here."

Obito placed the flowers gingerly beneath the grave stone. "Yeah, I know. You're probably really worried- I mean, I'm not exactly the most responsible person or around... far from it, anyways. But I think I'm doing okay. I lived by myself for most of my life, remember? Anyways, Naruto likes me well enough, and it's impossible _not_ to like him. But a lot of villagers _do, _and it's such shit- sorry. But they hate him because he's the demon container for the Nine Tailed Fox, like Kushina-san. It's just so _stupid_."_  
_

He kicked a nearby rock, sending it skittering off into a bush. "He doesn't have parents anymore- Sensei and Kushina-san are both dead. But I guess you already know. Um. Say hi to them for me? I guess they're wondering why I'm not there." Obito scratched the back of his head absentmindedly. "Kakashi and I don't fight anymore. You must be really proud. But... he's not that much of an asshole anymore. Hell, he's changed so much, it's almost creepy. I heard from a couple of jounin that Kakashi was three hours late to an important meeting, and when he got there, he told them that he got lost. On the road of _life_. _Kakashi_. He's stealing _my_ excuses!"

"You know, Rin... Sometimes, I wonder what it would be like if- if everything turned out alright. If Sensei and Kushina-san hadn't died, if the weird masked man hadn't let the Fox out, if you hadn't died... if _I_ hadn't died... We could have been so _happy_." He swallowed thickly. "But I guess that's just how things were supposed to go. Anyways... it's getting late. I have to go back now, but I'll come back tomorrow. And the day after that. But until then..."

Obito sniffled. "Goodbye, Rin. Until the next time."

* * *

A few minutes after the boy had left, a light rain began, turning the ground into mud and dirtying the flowers that he had left behind. It was then that a man slipped out from a shadow that should have been too small to obscure someone of that size.

He wore an orange mask, with a single eyehole from which a spiral began, and continued across the rest of the mask. He stared silently for a moment at the way Obito had gone, then turned to the gravestone.

The man crouched down, his mask inches away from the surface of the smooth stone. One gloved hand reached out, paused hesitantly, and kept going. He stroked the cold surface tenderly, as one would do a lover. For some reason, neither the rain nor the mud seemed to bother him in the least- it was like they went right through him.

"Goodbye, Rin." He said finally, and stood up.

For the first time in eight years- since he had witnessed, in horrified shock, his teammate putting a hand right through his best friend's heart- he felt something other than hate. The darkness that had engulfed his very being for so long seemed, for a moment, to lessen.

He had devoted himself to the Moon's Eye plan for almost a decade. It had been the reason for his existence, the reason why he was still alive, instead of going off to follow Rin to wherever she had ended up. But... now, there was _doubt_. It was small, almost nonexistent, but present nonetheless. He had been certain of the pure impossibility of peace, of the inevitability of war and violence- like the one that had claimed Rin's life.

But now... there was _hope_.

He gritted his teeth behind his mask. No. That was something he could not afford. He will go through with his plan- get Nagato to resurrect Madara-sama, summon the Ten Tails... and remake this world into one of peace. And for that... some people will have to be sacrificed, Sensei's son included. But that was alright- everyone will be alive once his genjutsu was implemented. Sensei, Kushina-san, his parents...

_Rin_.

* * *

**A/N: It's been a while. Two months, to be exact. Well, I wasn't planning on being away for _that_ long... but I hope the sorta-maybe longer chapter made up for it. This fic was AU from the start, but starting from now, I won't be recognizing events happening in newer chapters of the manga. After all, I really don't want to change my whole 'Why the hell did Kakashi kill Rin?' backstory if Kishimoto decides on something completely different...**

**This will be the last chapter before the timeskip. The events of the next chapter will be the beginning of the actual Naruto manga. BTW, this fic won't be that ambitious to try to cover all six hundred plus chapters of the Naruto manga. From what I'm planning... this will hit its climax around Chuunin Exams, or soon afterwards. After all, Tobi now has an actual reason to pay attention to Konoha- he doesn't want to disappear into nothing.**

**I hope the OC was alright. She definitely won't be having a great part in the plot, so if you're worried about that, don't be. Maki probably won't appear again other than other characters referring to her in the rest of the fic... unless, of course, you guys _want_ to have her appear.**

**Again, please read and review! Reviews really do make me want to update faster, so if you have _anything_ to say (or nothing at all, I guess) please, _please _leave a review so I know what to change, or what you feel about current events.**

**Next chapter will, hopefully, get out faster than this one did.**

**(3.4.2013) Wow, thank you for all the amazing reviews. I have to admit I did a double take when I opened up today. I will try my best to reply to all of them, and answer any questions you might have about the (admittedly confusing) plot.**

**Due to popular demand, I'll be writing an interlude bridging the events of this chapter and the start of the Naruto manga. It will answer the whole 'What the hell happened with Sasuke?" (though if you're expecting Obito to adopt him too, you might be disappointed...) and the small but significant changes in Naruto's life.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Title: **Chapter 7: The Problem With Sasuke

**Rating: **K+

**Summary: **Obito doesn't abandon family, and he definitely won't leave Sasuke to stew in his hate and anger. So what if the Council doesn't want an unknown factor to influence their one remaining Uchiha? Alright, so even the old man is telling him that it's a bad idea. But Obito is nothing but determined, and he'll do everything he can to save his cousin from himself- after all, he wouldn't be Obito if he didn't try.

Meanwhile, Sasuke is confused at why a brightly garbed, goggle-wearing civilian keeps trying to talk to him.

The Sandaime, however, takes a third option.

Starts slightly before the events of the last chapter and keeps going.

* * *

"Wha- What do you mean you can't do it?" Obito blinked, jaw open. "Y-You're the Hokage, right? I thought you had the ultimate say in everything!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. "...It isn't that simple, Obito. There are many people who have a part in making this decision, and while I, as Hokage, have the biggest say... that does not guarantee a 'yes'."

"Like who?"

"The Council members. Danzo Shimura." He thought for a second. "And since this will be affecting the only remaining member- and clan head- of one of the village's greatest clans, you will also need the input of the clan heads."

"Eh? Who's this Danzo guy you're talking about?"

His old rival had always preferred to stay in the shadows. With that said, it wasn't surprising that the boy didn't know who he was. Most villagers and lower ranking shinobi didn't. Only the top ranks knew of Danzo's importance to the village, and the power he wielded.

"Danzo Shimura is an old rival of mine." He answered simply. "He is also a respected elder of the village."

"Oh. Why does_ he_ care about what happens to Sasuke?"

Sarutobi didn't know for sure, but he had his suspicions- and they were nothing good. After all, the village seemed to be having a sudden decrease in orphans and his old rival seemed to be the one approving a lot of it. He didn't know for sure what happened to those children, but they always seemed to turn up when their disappearances were inquired about, always perfectly behaved.

But he couldn't very well voice his wild theories, could he? Besides, he didn't want to be the one to tell Obito that Danzo, the Council, and himself (albeit reluctantly)- effectively the governing force of the village- had been the ones to order the complete and utter massacre of his clan by one of its own members, and a pacifist one at that.

"He has his reasons." He said finally.

"Ooookay, then. Never heard of him, to be honest." Obito scowled. "But why _wouldn't_ the other people agree? I've done a good job with Naruto, right? And I mean, Sasuke is _family_. I'm the only Uchiha he has left."

Privately, Sarutobi agreed. Naruto seemed much happier and more controlled since Obito had first been assigned as his caretaker, and according to the boy, his "superawesomeolderbrotherthan kyousosososomucholdman"- as far as he could garner from Naruto's shouting. But... "They don't know that." He reminded. "As far as they know, you're just a recent arrival from a trading village who has enough Uchiha blood in him to look like one. While you have been doing well with Naruto-kun, most of them frankly could care less about his well being. Sasuke, however..."

"Fine. But speaking of that... why _can't_ they know that I'm Uchiha? I mean, we wouldn't have to tell them who I am, exactly, and how I ended up here... but just about me being an actual Uchiha. Maybe you could say I was out of town on a mission or something." Obito asked hopefully. "They would be happy about it, wouldn't they? It's not like being an Uchiha is a bad thing..."

If only he knew. "There are such things as records," He replied dryly. "I think people would notice if an Uchiha appeared who haven't been listed in records of any sort- you don't have a birth certificate of your current identity, after all. And..."

How could he explain to him just _why_ he couldn't let it get out that another Uchiha now existed? The boy had no idea of the complex clan politics- and judging by the looks of him, _any_ politics in general- and wasn't present when the rest of his clan was gearing for a coup. He did not know how far some people would go to to gain control over an Uchiha or to get a pair of Sharingan- his old student included.

How could he tell him that if the Council knew that he was an Uchiha, he would be ordered killed or brought in for interrogation- or worse?

"It would be hazardous to your well being." He explained, "Because there are only two- three, including yourself- Uchiha clan members left, and one of which is a S-rank missing nin, many of Konoha's enemies will be looking to get their hands on an Uchiha, by any means possible. Sasuke is well-known, so it will not be so easy to get a hold of him. You, on the other hand, are virtually unknown to everyone in this time."

"I'm not weak, alright? I'm a chuunin- I can hold my own if any weirdos try to kidnap me!" The boy retorted, hands balling into fists. "It wasn't any different back during the war. I'm used to being targeted because of my clan."

"Things _have_ changed, Obito." His own village had turned against his clan, for one. But he couldn't very well say that, could he? "It's better to be safe than sorry."

Obito didn't look very happy, but didn't argue. "C-can't you just... ask them? You don't know what they'll say unless you try, right? And... no matter what they say, there's nothing they can do to stop me from- I don't know, talking to Sasuke on the street, or something?"

"...I can, but there's an incredibly small chance that they'll agree. I'll do whatever I can, Obito."

He had spent hours debating vigorously to stop Sasuke from falling into the hands of his old rival in the first place, and another few days to make sure no clan could assimilate the Uchiha in hopes of gaining more power in the village. And now he had to convince them to let a half-Uchiha bastard gain such influence over the boy. It would be a small miracle.

"Technically speaking, there's nothing they can do about it. But..." He cautioned, "Don't give anything away, even to Sasuke. There are ears listening everywhere, and even as Hokage, I can't cover up something this big for you."

"Don't worry about me, Hokage-sama! I am a _master_ of stealth!" Obito gave the old man a thumbs up.

Sarutobi stared. This was going to end badly.

* * *

"Yo!"

Sasuke kept walking, ignoring the enthusiastic greeting.

"Hey, I'm talking to you! Yeah, you! Boy with the duck butt hair!"

He froze, and turned around slowly. _Who the hell-?_

The speaker wasn't anyone he could remember meeting. He looked to be in his early teens, messy black hair spilling over the top of his... were those _goggles_? He was dressed in civilian clothing, his bright orange jacket clashing with the navy blue of his shirt. His pants, at least, were relatively sensible- gray shorts with black stripes. He looked... Uchiha, for lack of a better word. But Sasuke knew it was impossible- everyone else in his clan was dead. Yet that did not do anything to calm down that rise of hope from deep inside.

But it was obvious to anyone even slightly knowledgeable of the shinobi arts that his follower wasn't shinobi, even if he hadn't noticed the conspicuous absence where any shinobi's hitai-ate would have been tied. After all, what kind of self-respecting shinobi would wear _orange_?

"...Do I know you?" Sasuke asked cautiously. While he was pretty sure he hadn't never seen the teen before in his life- he _was_ pretty memorable, after all- it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"No." The teen replied confidently.

Oh. He was one of _those_ kinds. Since the night that he came home to see his older brother standing over his parents' corpses, he seemed to be attracting a lot of attention- not necessarily _bad_, but just incredibly annoying. Being the one remaining Uchiha made him into a _celebrity _to some incredibly twisted people.

Sasuke turned around and started walking.

"Hey, I want to talk to you!"

He broke out into a run, and didn't stop until he was sure he was no longer followed by the orange-wearing weirdo.

* * *

Obito stared blankly at the spot where Sasuke had been standing, just a few minutes ago. _Had_.

Crap. That had _not_ gone as planned. But that just meant he was going to have to try again. And again, and again, and again...

* * *

"Why the _hell_ are you following me?" Sasuke shouted finally, after seeing the spiky-haired teen trying to follow him surreptitiously for the umpteenth time. In the week he had been steadfastedly ignoring the other's presence, he had been calling him Orange Wearing Weirdo- a name that served him pretty well.

His stalker blinked, clearly surprised at being noticed. "Ah... I need to talk to you about something."

"Then get it over with." Sasuke snarled, "And stop _following_ me!"

"...Alright, I got this..." The weirdo started whispering to himself, then turned around and began to mutter words of encouragement to _himself_. "...come on, you _practiced_ this..." He turned around finally, a bright grin on his face, hand rummaging in his left pocket- and his face fell when his hand came out with nothing.

"Wait- no, _no, no_, don't fail me now, come _on_-" The teen started patting himself down frantically, making him look like he was doing a strange dance.

Sasuke stared at him blankly. "...Look, just... Stop stalking me. I don't want to talk to you about anything, so just _stop_."

He strode away briskly, effortlessly navigating through the crowds of pedestrians.

* * *

Obito swore profusely as his cousin got away. _Again_. Where _did_ his notecards go? He had written them out painstakingly weeks before, and now they were gone. His probing fingers felt the ragged edge of his cards, and he pulled them out excitedly.

His grin fell from his face. They were in his right pocket the whole time.

Dammit.

* * *

After his tenth sighting of the orange wearing weirdo, Sasuke had no choice but to give up on trying to handle the situation on his own. His parents had talked to him about stranger danger, after all, and while a hopelessly inept civilian couldn't do much harm to him, he was _annoying_. And well, he _did_ have an ANBU guard for a reason, right?

The night he got out of the hospital, physically but not mentally healed, the Hokage had assigned him an ANBU of his own- to protect him from assassinations, make sure that his apartment was always well supplied (though imagining one of the serious elite guards of the village at the local supermarket was entertaining, Sasuke knew that more likely than not, the man was simply in charge of ordering genin to do the missions), and Sasuke suspected, to stop him from offing himself one day.

So far, he'd been successful in all three of his tasks. If any disgruntled shinobi or villager had decided to go after the last remaining Uchiha, his guard had dispatched them without him noticing. Sasuke's pantry was well stocked with food and his supplies replenished every week. And finally, he hadn't tried to kill himself. Really, the Hokage didn't have to worry about him doing _that_.

Sasuke couldn't die before he got revenge on his clan's killer- his older brother- or he would die trying. Taking the easy way out would be completely against his principles.

His ANBU guard was a welcome presence, however.

His classmates at the Academy had no idea what he had gone through, and only stared at him with their childish, naive faces- especially the idiot dead last Naruto, who had taken to bragging loudly about his- somehow- newly found elder brother, seemingly oblivious to Sasuke's gritted teeth. It was a cruel coincidence for his classmate to have gained the very thing he had lost- on the same day, in fact.

The villagers looked at him with pity, which angered him more than if they had looked at him with any other emotion. What _right_ did they have to feel _sorry_ for him? He rejected their hapless attempts at sympathy and ignored the baked goods some left at his door.

But his guard treated him like a person, not a piece of glass that could break at any moment. Instead of tip-toeing past him like he was something _fragile_, he spoke bluntly, almost like he was talking to an equal. The man might be a emotionless human weapon, but right now, he was the only thing Sasuke had the slightest shred of faith in, in his life.

"ANBU-san." Sasuke said, looking unflinchingly at the expressionless wolf mask of his guard. "I... have noticed a person following me around the village."

"Hn." The other man inclined his head thoughtfully. "Is that so. Describe him."

"He... He has dark hair and eyes, and wears a combination of orange and dark blue." He hesitated. "He is also very... loud."

"Let me guess. He also wears a pair of obnoxiously orange goggles." This was stated with, strangely enough, an undercurrent of humor.

"...Yes, he does, actually. ANBU-san... you know him?"

"You could say that." Even though Sasuke could not see his face, he had the strange feeling that the man was... _smiling_. "Uchiha-san. I'll take care of the problem immediately."

And ANBU Wolf was out and over his window-sill almost as quickly as he had come. Sasuke stared in dismay as the dark form bounded away into the night.

_...Is it impossible for shinobi to use doors_?

* * *

"Yo."

Obito squawked in surprise as his head came up and hit his wooden desk with a clang. "Dammit, Kakashi! I am _not_ used to your weird ANBU teleporting shit!" He complained. "And... wait, are you stealing my lines? You _never_ say 'yo'! That's _my_ thing!"

His old teammate looked at him with wry amusement. "It's mine now."

"Ugh. Never thought _you_ would try to act like _me_. Though..." He looked up at Kakashi questioningly. "Why are _you_ here? Not that there's anything wrong with you visiting, but... it's one in the morning, and it's a school night."

"I'll try not to wake up Naruto-kun then." Due to Obito's urging, Kakashi had tried actually interacting with his sensei's son outside of ANBU uniform. It had been too painful before. Naruto had seen through him immediately- was his identity really that obvious? But then again, he didn't know anyone else with his bright shade of silvery white hair, the same hair that his ANBU mask did nothing to hide. Maybe he should dye it...

"Fine, fine... But you didn't answer me. What are you doing here?"

"A little bird told me that you were trying to get a hold of your little cousin- and failing pretty badly in the process."

"Hey! Who told you?"

Kakashi winked, though it was hard to tell with him only having one eye visible. Maybe he was just closing his eye really awkwardly. "You know, here and there... Some civilians gossiping in the market, an old lady told me after I helped her cross the road..."

"Oh."

"...Also, Sasuke told me he had a loud, orange-wearing stalker with goggles."

"Oh- wait, _what_?" Obito's eye twitched. "Why would he tell _you_? How does he even know you?"

"Ah... that might be because I'm his ANBU guard."

A beat.

"_What_? When did you start looking after my cousin- and why didn't you tell me?" Obito shouted.

"Quiet, quiet... wouldn't want to wake up Naruto-kun, would you?" Kakashi placated, "And... to answer your question, ever since he was released from the hospital... let me see, three weeks ago."

"Wha- you never said anything about that before!"

"You didn't ask."

"Kakashi, you asshole, I've been trying to talk to Sasuke for the last two weeks- and he's been avoiding me _everywhere_! It could have helped if you- I don't know, _told_ me ahead of time? Like, 'Oh, Obito, did you know that I'm taking care of your only surviving relative'? You don't think that would have been useful?"_  
_

His teammate's lone eye suddenly turned a bit more serious. "Really, Obito, I didn't know you've been trying to make contact. But... you _do_ know that my identity as ANBU Wolf is supposed to be secret, right? Even though Naruto and yourself already know who I really am, I rather not give out the information so freely."

"Um... then why are you telling me now?"

"Because you following Sasuke-kun is now having an impact on _my_ mission. He's not too happy about you following him around all day."

"I wouldn't _have_ to if he didn't keep running off every time I tried to talk to him..." Obito scowled. "Why won't he _talk_ to me?"

Kakashi peered at him. "Eh? Why would Sasuke-kun want to talk to you?"

"Are you kidding me? I'm his _cousin_. I'm the only other Uchiha left, other than him and Itachi-ku-" He stopped abruptly. It didn't feel right calling the murderer of his entire clan by _that_, even if Itachi had been one of the only Uchiha's he actually liked, way back when. He had no idea what had turned the adorable, idealistic midget into the monster he had encountered _that_ night. "Itachi." He finished lamely._  
_

"That's all well and good, but... he doesn't know that, does he?" His old teammate looked at him seriously. "He has no idea who you are, and why you want to talk to him so much. His whole family was killed three weeks ago, Obito. It's not strange that he doesn't feel up to talking- especially not to a complete stranger."

Obito deflated. That was true, as much as he wanted it to be otherwise."But- then how can I talk to him? Because I _have_ to. Like you said, Kakashi, his entire clan- and mine's too- is _gone_. And... I'm pissed about it. I'm angry. I want to chase down Itachi and his masked buddy and find out what the hell they were thinking, doing something like this." He frowned, beside himself. "And that's _me. _Most of the people who were murdered... I didn't even _know_ them, or at least I didn't like them. Sasuke did, and I'm sure _he_ was pretty well liked by his clan. Also, it was his _brother _who did everything- and according to the old man, the bastard replayed everything over for him to watch, only to feed him some bullshit about getting revenge."

His hands clenched involuntarily. "I'm not the vengeful type, Kakashi, and you know it. So if _I _want to- to-" Obito swallowed. "I've seen people completely consumed by their need for revenge... it's not pretty. I might not have known Sasuke before a few weeks ago, but family is family, and I can't let the same thing happen to Sasuke."

Kakashi regarded him silently. "Hn. I think I can help you with that."

"I thought you said you couldn't-"

"I lied." The other man replied cheerfully. "Or rather, I omitted some truths. But I don't think it would be against any part of my mission to introduce Sasuke-kun to someone he might find interesting."

"But- I can't tell him that I'm an Uchiha... the old man told me that nobody can know who I actually am, except for the people who already know..."

"You should address the Hokage-sama with the respect he deserves." Kakashi admonished, though not looking very serious about it. "Anyways, who says you have to tell him the truth? Your cover story will serve well enough, until you manage to convince the Hokage-sama otherwise."

"My cover story...? Haha, yeah! My cover story..." Obito said, and laughed fakely. "...um."

"You forgot it completely, didn't you." His old teammate deadpanned. At the other's nod, he sighed. "I can't believe I tried to act like you for the last eight years..."

"Wait, what did you say?"

"Nothing, nothing." Kakashi cleared his throat. "You're supposed to be Obito, no last name- your mother did not want to associate herself with an illegitimate child, and your father was long gone by the time you were born. You grew up in an orphanage in a small trading village, and set out on your own when you were nine. You decided to look for your father, and after being told that you looked to be of descent of the Uchiha clan of Konohagakure, you decided to head there instead."

Obito had the classic Uchiha look, which would make it hard to explain his lack of relation. However, being a full-blooded Uchiha was out of the question. A bastard son, however... well, it was a well known fact- or rumor, the originators of the 'fact' were the rather untrustworthy Uchiha clan council- that the Sharingan and other Uchiha-only characteristics surfaced only in full-blooded Uchiha's. That was one of the reasons most Uchiha married within the clan. That would also lessen any threat Obito could pose to the village, and also the use he would have for any curious enemy nin.

"Wow, that's a pretty crappy childhood..." Obito frowned. "Wait, why did I take four years to get to this village? I'm not supposed to be _that_ dumb, am I? And... I'm supposed to pretend that I know nothing about being a shinobi? That's a load of-"

"I'm getting to that. In your travels, you encountered a retired shinobi who decided to teach you some basic self-defense. You stayed with him for a few years before his untimely death, by which time you decided to continue on to your journey to Konoha. Unfortunately, by the time you got here, the entire Uchiha clan had been massacred for the exception of one little boy and his older brother, who had been the clan killer in the first place."

"...That's pretty depressing..." Obito sweatdropped.

Kakashi continued in a monotone. "You talked with the Hokage-sama of the village and discovered that yes, your father was most definitely an Uchiha, and unfortunately, he was one of the many casualties of the Uchiha massacre. After demonstrating your skills to the Academy instructors, you were awarded the rank of..."

"Of...?"

"Genin." The man deadpanned.

"_What-?_" Obito choked. "I'm a _genin_? Kakashi, I worked _hard_ to get chuunin- I didn't get beaten up by eyebrow Gai and go through the exams to be a freaking _genin_!"

"Don't worry, most kids these days tend to be genin at age twelve, so you won't be that behind."

"Ugh, but... wait, I can still take the chuunin exams to advance, right? Right?"

"Um." Kakashi scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Actually, you can't. It would be too suspicious to have a civilian who barely made genin to suddenly go for chuunin, using techniques that the Uchiha clan is known for. So no. But the good news is..."

"Is...?"

"You can stay as an incredibly overpowered genin!" Kakashi told him in a falsely cheery tone.

Obito's eye started to twitch.

* * *

He stared at the other person in his apartment in shock. "Wha- How did you find me?" He snarled finally, hand digging for a kunai.

"No need to get violent, Sasuke." ANBU Wolf spoke up from where he stood near the window. "I was the one who brought him here."

"ANBU-san." He started in surprise- he had never gotten used to the elite guard's habit of popping out from behind people. "I- I see. But why did you bring _him_ over?" Sasuke glared at the intruder, who simply grinned back idiotically.

"Obito here is a... friend of mine." The silver haired man said simply, "I have reason to believe you would be interested in hearing what he has to say."

This stupid looking civilian was a _friend_ of Wolf-san's? The two were like night and day- it was hard to believe that they even knew each other. On one hand, Sasuke wanted to say no, to order 'Obito' (and that name _did_ sound kind of familiar, for some strange reason...) out of his apartment and out of his life, where he couldn't taunt him with those features that reminded him of his long gone clan.

But on the other hand, Wolf-san had never seemed like the person who would waste his time.

"...Fine." Sasuke said finally, "Say whatever you need to, and _go_."

The orange weirdo- and did he wear anything _other_ than orange and blue?- smiled awkwardly.

"I wanted to talk to you because... well, because you're my cousin." He said, and Sasuke's mind went blank. He could hear a thud behind him, like the sound of someone slamming their head into the wall.

"Y-You're lying." He snarled finally, his tongue feeling strangely numb. It was impossible, but there was still that strange hope- "My family- the entire Uchiha clan- they're are all dead- I saw them die myself. And I _know_ all of my cousins, and you aren't any of them."

"Hey, I'm not lying- I wouldn't lie about something like this!" The teen retorted, face reddening. "Look, you can't possibly know _everyone_ in your clan, can you?"

"Then how did you survive? How did you survive-" He choked a bit. "How did you survive _him_?"

"Who?"

"_Him_. My brother. _Itachi_." He spat.

"Oh. I wasn't in the village at the time."

"Bull_shit_." Sasuke growled. "The Hokage-sama told me that every one of the clan was present. Are you trying to tell me that I should believe you over him?"

"He didn't lie." Obito said. "I'm not a Konoha citizen. I was still on the way to the village at the time of the clan massacre."

He stared incredulously. "Now, I know you can't be serious. Every member of the Uchiha clan is a citizen of Konoha. Has been since the village's founding."

"Well," The other scratched his head, "I'm not a member of the Uchiha clan- at least, not exactly. My father was an Uchiha, but... my mother was not. _She_... was from a trading village up north. That's where I'm from. I came here to look for family. Well..." He shrugged. "I found one."

Sasuke froze. "You're... half-Uchiha?"

"Sure am!" The other replied cheerily.

So he looked at him- really looked- and... the spiky dark hair that reminded him of his mother's younger brother, Katsuro... the dark, almost black eyes that he saw in the mirror every morning, and even the face shape was oh so very familiar. It couldn't be... but it was possible. His father had talked about such things, after all.

Sasuke swallowed hesitantly. "Wolf-san." He asked, "Is he telling the truth?"

The ANBU, who had, until that point, been watching their talk with exasperation and no small degree of amusement, spoke up. "The Hokage-sama has confirmed that Obito-san's father was indeed a part of the Uchiha clan- however, we do not know who he is, specifically."

Obito grinned at him. Sasuke stared back- and ran up to his cousin with a huge smile on his face. The two hugged tightly, tears streaming from the eyes of both Uchihas.

"You're the best Uchiha ever, Cousin Obito!" Sasuke exclaimed, eyes sparkling. ANBU Wolf stared at them expressionlessly in the background.

* * *

"...And that's what happened with Sasuke." Obito said cheerfully, finally ending his recounting of the events of the past two weeks.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared. And stared some more. Finally, he sighed. "ANBU Wolf. What _really_ happened?"

"Sir, Fugaku Uchiha seemed to share the same dislike the majority of Uchiha had for those of less than pure Uchiha descent. His prejudice was ingrained into his son since a young age." The ANBU reported, ignoring Obito's splutters in the background. "Obito's account was accurate up until the most recent events. Sasuke didn't react well when their relation was revealed."

"I take it that he didn't... exactly run into Obito-kun's arms, like he said." The Sandaime shot Obito a look, and the boy wilted.

"No sir."

"And what do you mean by 'not react well'?" The Sandaime questioned.

"Um...He might have thrown a kunai." Obito added frowning. "It didn't hit me or anything- he just threw it at a drawer. That I was standing next to. And um..."

"Sasuke Uchiha asserted that his clan was elite and powerful, without members such as Obito, who he did not deem to be up to the Uchiha Clan's standards." The silver haired ANBU continued in a monotone, "It seems that he had put his clan upon a pedestal. Obito did not make a satisfactory impression on him, and the boy rejected him."

"Hey!" Obito interjected, "Sure, Sasuke might be ignoring my existence right now, but I'm pretty sure that's just because he hasn't had enough time to get used to me. And, well, it would really help his opinion of me if I could show him that I'm not exactly who he thinks I am..."

"...I'm afraid that's just not possible." The Sandaime sighed. "But I have to admit... I expected this."

"Wait, you did?"

"Yes. From what we know happened on the night of the Uchiha Massacre, Itachi Uchiha said something to his younger brother that spurred an extreme desire for vengeance. As a result, reports have been turned in to me that Sasuke-kun has been rejecting all forms of friendship or relationships with other people that he deems useless- that won't help him gain more power."

"Th-That's insane!" The Uchiha exclaimed, "Nobody can just cut themself off from the rest of humanity! It's just going to end badly for him. Really badly."

"I agree. That is, unless he has a proper guardian to guide him away from that path."

"Wait, you're still going to-?"

"The choice of guardian for Sasuke Uchiha was voted upon yesterday. We had to choose someone who is a loyal member of the village and is trusted by the elders. Due to the request of Danzo Shimura, the person must also possess the knowledge of how to use a Sharingan, in order to train Sasuke-kun when he develops his kekkai genkai. Due to the request of the clan heads, the person must not be a member of any of the other major clans in the village, and won't use the boy for his own means."

His eyes sharpened. "And... my own request. Sasuke Uchiha must be assigned to someone he has some sort of emotional bond with already- someone he doesn't have conflict with."

Obito, whose face had fallen sometime during the Sandaime's explanation, murmured. "It's not me, is it."

"...I'm afraid not, Obito-kun."

"But- nobody fits into all those standards, do they?" His face scrunched up in confusion. "All the other Uchiha are gone. So who can still teach Sasuke about using the Sharingan?"

The Sandaime just looked at him.

Obito could connect the dots. It just took him longer than it did other people. "No way..." He breathed finally, "You can't be saying- You can't be serious."

"I am very serious, Obito-kun. He is the only person in this village who fits under all of said standards, and thus was chosen unanimously. However... I have a feeling that he won't be against you visiting Sasuke-kun." He winked. "You might want to ask him, however."

"...You're going to make me quit ANBU for this, won't you." ANBU Wolf said petulantly in the background. "Damn."

* * *

**A/N: Blah, this is no longer an interlude. I have a lot of stuff planned out between the previous chapter and the start of canon Naruto manga. I'm going to have a few chapters between the gap instead of just a few interludes. So good news, updates should be a lot more frequent. Bad news, the chapters won't be as long.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Rating:** K+

**Summary: **Obito's presence affects more than just Naruto.

[[Ignores Road to Ninja, for the most part]]

* * *

Sakura Haruno hated her life.

She wanted to fit in- with her classmates, with her neighbors, with everyone else in the village. But her every feature marked her as something _different_.

Her distinctive pink hair, inherited from her father, was the trademark of the Haruno clan- most of which lived on the other side of Fire Country. Her green eyes, of a color she hadn't seen of anyone else in Konoha, originated somewhere in Water Country, where her father, then a travelling merchant, had met her mother.

She felt completely out-of-place at the Academy, surrounded by Clan kids who have spent their entire life knowing about shinobi and chakra and everything she didn't. Her parents, on the other hand, were merchants who had settled in Konoha shortly before the Nine Tales attack, looking for a stable place to raise a family. She had been born soon after.

She hadn't grown up knowing much about shinobi- the market economy was a far more likely topic at the dinner table- until the day her instructor at civilian school had, in a parent conference, told her family that she would make a very good kunoichi one day.

Sakura had been ecstatic. All she knew about shinobi was that they were powerful and that they protected the village from bad guys. Of course she wanted to be one of them! But her parents hadn't been so sure. They warned her that the life of a kunoichi was nowhere as glamorous as she would have thought, that this decision was not one to be taken likely.

But she had been adamant, and Sakura Haruno became the first person, on both sides of her family, to train as a shinobi.

Her first day had been disastrous. Most of the kids there already knew each other through their clans and families and many of her classmates tittered excitedly about her looks. More than one had come up to her asking if her hair color was natural. When the instructor- a kindly, white-haired young man- had started asking questions, she realized with horror that she knew the answers to none of them.

Then he had came to her. "Sakura-chan, I've noticed that you haven't answered any questions in today's discussion. Here's one for you- What is the shinobi rank after chuunin?"

Sakura stared at him blankly. Chuunin? Ranks? She had never heard of those words, and she had even less idea what the rank after chuunin was. The people sitting next to her were whispering.

"How does she _not_ know that? It's basic!"

"Probably just some stupid civilian kid."

"Probably? Look at her hair! No way would a serious kunoichi have _pink_ hair."

In the end, she hadn't answered the question and the instructor had moved on, but not before saying patronizingly, "Don't worry. You just take in information a bit slower than other students, nothing to worry about."

She ran to the village library the moment school was out, spending hours going through the texts and learning everything- _anything_- she could about shinobi. She won't let herself put in the same situation, not if she could help it.

The next day, when Mizuki-sensei had came back to her, she answered loudly and proudly. "It is jounin, Mizuki-sensei."

Sakura answered all the questions she could, determined to prove that she was _not_ stupid. But her actions had an adverse effect, and soon her classmates were whispering again.

"Kami, what an insufferable know-it-all."

"I know, right? She just wants everyone to know how _smart_ she is."

"She might be smart, but she's ugly. Look at her _forehead_! It's _huge_!"

Laughter. "Hah, it's like she's deformed!"

And that was how the teasing started. It had been relatively mild at first, with just a few disparaging remarks. Just a week later, Sakura would find herself being followed by a chorus of female classmates, loudly proclaiming the ugliness of her large forehead.

* * *

It was after one such incident that lead to her actions now- that is, sobbing quietly against the trunk of a rather large tree.

It was useless. She had no friends- everyone she had approached had laughed in her face or stared at her like some _oddity_. Sakura did well in the academics portion of school, but she could never get the hang of throwing kunai and shruiken, often missing her targets completely. That wasn't to say that she didn't try- the numerous cuts on her fingers attested to the opposite. She was ugly, with her horrifying large forehead and clumsy body.

_Maybe_, she thought vehemently, _I'm just not meant to be a kunoichi._

After all, weren't kunoichi supposed to be beautiful and deadly, able to cut down their enemies with grace? How was she, Sakura Haruno, daughter of _merchants_... supposed to become one of them?

"Bastard! Where the hell did you put my goggles?"

Sakura blinked. What...? She wiped away her tears and got up slowly. There was someone else here? Screaming about goggles?

Heavy footsteps, coming toward her- a few dozen feet away. The person- a male, from the sound of his voice- was cursing colorfully as he walked. He seemed angry, stomping on the fallen leaves and kicking aside twigs.

She pressed herself against the tree trunk, trying not to breath. That was when the large bush in front of her started to rustle. As she stared with wide eyes, a dark-haired boy punched his way through the leaves and promptly tripped on the root in front of him, sending him thudding to the ground.

He got up slowly, wiping the dirt and leave bits off his clothing, seemingly oblivious to her presence. "When I get my hands on the asshole, I swear-" He looked up and met his terrified gaze with his own. "Oh. Um."

Sakura let out a squeak and scrambled farther away from him.

"Hey, hey- don't run!" He yelped, gesturing to his hitai-ate frantically. "I'm not gonna hurt you!"

She blinked. Oh. He was a shinobi- and judging from his lack of a chuunin vest and age, probably a genin. "S-sorry." Sakura muttered, eyeing him cautiously.

"It's alright." He told her with a wide grin. "Um, this might seem like a really strange question to ask, but have you seen a white haired man around here? He's a bit taller than me- but not _that _much taller- and he wears a weird face mask that covers his entire face. He stole my goggles and I'm trying to get them back. I've been looking for them for _hours._"

She shook her head slowly. "...No, I haven't seen anyone like that," before adding uncertainly, "I-I can help you look for them?"

He brightened immediately. "Sure, thanks! Hey, what's your name anyway? Mine's Obito Uch- just Obito." He laughed, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Yeah, I'm Obito."

"My name's Sakura." She didn't give him her last name. Maybe Obito-san had an issue with family names and that's why he didn't give her his, she rationalized.

"The name really suits you, Sakura-chan!" Obito replied brightly. Sakura turned crimson- people _always_ asked where her hair color came from, as it wasn't a common color among Konoha inhabitants. But thankfully, he said nothing more about it.

"...Thanks. Um, Obito-san, who _is_ the white haired man who took your goggles?"

"Oh, him? He's just an old teammate." Sakura stared. An _old_ teammate? But if Obito was a genin, shouldn't the man (and why would Obito be on a team with someone that much older than him?) be his current teammate? But she didn't push for more.

The genin had stopped a few feet away, staring at a small hollow in a tree trunk in dismay. "Hey, Sakura-chan? Do you think you can take a look in there and see if my goggles are there?"

She peeked in. "Sorry, I don't see anything. Obito-san, why did the man take your goggles in the first place?" She asked, drawing her head out of the hollow and brushing the bark fragments out of her long hair.

Obito frowned. "He told me to stop wearing them all the time." He explained sulkily. "But these goggles are _awesome_, okay? I've had them since before- um, for a long time. So he just stole them and disappeared off into the forest."

"Oh." Sakura squinted. "...Are they orange?"

"...Yes?" His jaw dropped. "Did you find it?"

"I think so..." She pointed. Obito looked up- and up. He stared. "No... way..."

It must have been the tallest tree in the forest- and on one of the topmost branches hung something orange and gleaming. It was incredibly high up- Sakura could barely even see it.

"That _bastard_." Obito muttered from beside her. "Does he think I can't do a simple tree climbing exercise?"

He stalked over to the tree and, as Sakura stared at him in bemusement, put one foot on the tree bark with a look of concentration- and, almost like he was pushed by an invisible force, was sent sprawling to the ground. A neat little crater was left on the tree bark.

"...The hell?" He sprung up. "That was the right amount of chakra! I know it!"

Sakura blinked. "Obito-san, what was that?"

"Eh, it's just a simple chakra control technique. But for some reason, it's just not _working_." Obito kicked the tree spitefully. "Damn Bakakashi. But I'm not going to give up on this!"

He tried again, to no avail. She cringed as he hit the ground again. "How do you do this?" She hazarded. After all, she _had_ been one of the top in her class for chakra control exercises. That was one of the few things she was good at.

"It's not that hard. You just have to send a certain amount of chakra to your feet and kinda use it to stick on. You can't put too little, cuz you'll fall off, but put too much and you'll get blown off- like I did." Obito stared at the tree in dismay. "I don't understand. I've been doing this for _years_. How come it's not working...?"

Sakura looked at the tree contemplatively. She put her foot on it and concentrated- and it _stuck._ Eyes wide, she took a step forward on the tree trunk- and she wasn't _falling_, it was _working_. In her excitement, however, she stopped the flow of chakra to her foot and she fell off, thudding onto the ground with a cry.

"Hey, be careful about that!" Obito shouted from a few feet away. "It's not that easy to get ahold of- it took my team days to get it down!"

"It's alright!" She shouted, grinning. "I think I got it!" And slowly but steadily, she made her way up the trunk, getting higher and higher- but closer and closer to Obito's goggles. When she finally got there, she tugged the orange goggles free from the branch from which it hung. Sakura made her way down carefully, concentrating the same amount of chakra she did going up. After all, it wouldn't be good if she fell from all the way up there.

Finally, she found herself back on solid ground, feeling inexplicably drained. Sakura handed Obito his goggles with a grin.

"Holy _shit_." Obito said, wide eyed. "That was _awesome_."

"You really think so?"

"Seriously! You have really good chakra control. It took me ages to be able to do it when I first started." He looked at her calculatingly. "Hey Sakura-chan, have you ever thought of being a medic-nin?"

She scrunched her face. "N-not really." It just sounded like a really boring profession. She much preferred being able to actually fight, to protect her village and her loved ones in a really active way. "Why?"

"Nothing, it's just... one of my old teammates was amazing at chakra control. Turns out that chakra control is really important for medic nin, so she started training as one. She was a really good one too! Since you picked it up so quickly, I thought you could be a great medic nin... that is, if you're interested in that sort of thing."

"I'll think about it," Sakura decided.

Obito grinned. "Well, medic nin or not, you'll make a great kunoichi one day."

She blinked. "Really?"

"Well, yeah! I only learned the tree climbing exercise when I was already put on a genin team. You're still in the Academy, right? So that makes you ahead of a lot of your classmates already!"

She smiled tentatively.

* * *

It had already gotten dark by the time she and Obito made it out of the forest.

"I hope your parents won't get too mad about you staying out too late," He told her. Then, with a contemplative look, asked, "Hey, what _were_ you doing that deep in the forest?

She hesitated. But really, what was the harm of telling him the truth? Sure, it was embarrassing, but... "I was getting chased by some girls from school." She said haltingly, "I-I decided to hide in here so I didn't have to hear them making fun of me."

"What kind of stuff do they say about you?"

"...A lot of different things. I'm not really... good at most of the exercises we do at the Academy. I can't throw kunai without cutting myself." She paused, and then continued, voice small. "...They say that I have a really big forehead..."

"Pssh. You just have to practice, that's all. I mean, I was last in my class for weaponry when _I_ was in the Academy. But I still turned out pretty awesome, right?" His grin was contagious. Sakura couldn't help but feel a bit cheered up. "Hey, you know what? You should come to the training grounds tomorrow. I'm giving having a training session with my kid brother. Apparently, some idiot instructor completely failed in teaching."

A kid brother? Sakura blinked. "Won't your brother won't mind me butting in?"

"Heh, no. Naruto isn't the kind of kid who would." Obito scratched his head nonchalantly.

She blinked. "..._Naruto? _ Naruto Uzumaki?"

_"_Yeah, actually." He squinted. "You know him?"

"H-He's in my class. But... he looks nothing like you." Naruto was blonde, blue-eyed, and hyperactice. Obito, on the other hand, was black haired and had dark eyes- though he was also pretty hyperactive. But looks wise, Sakura would have thought that he was _Sasuke's_ brother, if she hadn't known better.

"Not biologically," Obito explained. "But I mean, I was pretty close to his parents. Heck, they were the closest thing I had to a mom and dad. Naruto's my kid brother in all but blood."

That did make sense. Though honestly, she hadn't really talked with Naruto. He was always so energetic and loud, but she had to admit that the main reason she hadn't had much interaction with her blonde classmate was because of her parent's cryptic warnings. While he acted really friendly, his dad had told her that he was dangerous- which she didn't understand, really. Naruto seemed to her to be as dangerous as a fly.

Speaking of that, her parents probably wouldn't approve of her training with him. But... what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them, right?

"Sure," she replied excitedly. Obito grinned.

"Sounds good. You know, I wanted to give you something for helping me today. I mean, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have gotten my goggles back. So, um... close your eyes." She stared at him blankly. "I want it to be a surprise!"

So she did. Sakura felt a kind of strange pressure around the sides of her head- almost like some kind of... rubber band.

"You can open your eyes now."

She did. "Wha-?" Sakura managed, blinking a few times to orient herself. She was looking through some kind of glass, and while her vision was blurry for the first few minutes, she could see through it clearly enough to see Obito's grinning face. Her arms moved up and she felt around gingerly, feeling the smooth edges of...

"These- These are your goggles. But- you're giving them to me?" She breathed, shocked.

"Well, yeah! I mean, you helped me get them back in the first place, so it's not like you don't deserve 'em. Anyways, they're _awesome_. Goggles are stylish and cool- especially since I picked 'em out myself- and they protect your eyes too! But best of all," he leaned over, whispering conspiratorially, "This way, people won't notice your forehead. The goggles distract them, you see."

"I- Thank you, but... I can't take these."

Obito scrunched his eyebrows. "Why not?"

"I think they're great, but..." She swallowed, "You said these were important to you, that you've had them for a really long time. I can't just _take_ them from you!"

He laughed. "Hey, you're not taking them from me, are you? I'm _giving_ them to you. That's different. I _want_ to give them to you. Besides, maybe Kakashi was right... For once. These goggles... I don't need them anymore. Better that my goggles help someone else than gather dust."

"...You're sure?"

"Of course I am!"

Her mouth felt dry. Her parents had never been the kind of people who spent money on things they didn't absolutely need. As a result, presents and gifts of any sort were not very common in Sakura's life.

"Thank you," She managed, voice choked.

He ruffled her hair playfully. "Make me proud, alright? Don't let those bullies get to you. I know you're gonna be a great kunoichi one day."

* * *

"Welcome home, Saku-" Mebuki Haruno blinked. "What _are_ those?"

"They're goggles, mom," Sakura replied as she locked her door behind her. "Sorry I'm late. I, um, I got lost in the forest."

The older woman frowned. "That's why I don't like you wandering around in the forest, Sakura-chan. You might get hurt. I'm just glad you got back here before dark. Where did you get those goggles of yours? Because I know _I_ didn't buy those for you. Was it your father? I swear, that man has the worst fashion sense that anyone can possess. I wouldn't put it past him to get you tacky orange goggles like those."

"Dad didn't buy them. A friend gave them to me," Sakura wrinkled her nose. "And they're _not_ tacky!"

"A friend?" The blonde raised her eyebrow. "What kind of... friend? A classmate? And Sakura-chan, if you really wanted something for your forehead, you could have just told me. I know a place that sells the cutest headbands-"

"No, mom. I don't need headbands. I _like_ these goggles and I'm keeping them," She said resolutely. "And no, he's not a classmate. He's called Obito, and he's the one who helped me find my way out of the forest."

"Alright, Sakura. It's your choice," her mother said, looking at her goggles dubiously. "Though, the band is a bit big for you- but that, I can fix. Hm. Obito, no last name?"

"No, he didn't tell me. I didn't want to probe."

"Well, that's a pretty uncommon name. I can't say I know anyone with that name," she paused then, as an unpleasant thought occurred to her. Her expression darkened. "...Sakura-chan, how old was this... friend of yours?"

To Sakura's credit, she saw what her mom was going at, almost immediately. "H-He's only a few years older than me!" She yelped, "Besides, he had a hitai-ate. He's a genin, I think. Obito's not dangerous, mom."

Mebuki relaxed, "Well, I suppose that's alright then. Can you call your father? Tell him dinner's ready."

"No need!" Came a loud bellow from her father's bedroom. "I'm coming!"

Kizashi Haruno wasn't a very large man, but he made up for it with his exuberant and dynamic personality. Sakura's mother winced as he ran into the dining room. "Honey, can't you quiet it down a bit? Our neighbor's won't be happy with the noise you're making."

Sakura's mom was a great cook. The conversation around the dinner table was muted, just because everyone's mouth was kept otherwise busy. Finally, her father swallowed a mouthful of rice and pointed his chopsticks at Sakura, asking, "Sakura-chan! So, how was your day at the Academy today? They teach you anything cool?"

She froze for a moment, not knowing just how to answer that question. She hadn't learned much in class today, distracted by the mean-spirited whispers of her surrounding classmates. The main reason she had stayed so late outside was because Sakura had ran into the forest, trying to get away from her pursuers.

No, she decided. Why focus on the awful parts of her day when there were much happier parts? "I learned a new technique today, Dad," Sakura replied, picking at her fish. "It's called the Tree Climbing Technique."

"Eh...? That doesn't sound very cool. I can climb trees too, and I'm just a simple trader."

"Dad, no! It's not like- like normal tree climbing. I can just walk up trees and- I think I can walk up walls, too." It was the same principle, using her chakra to stick onto a surface.

Her father's eyes widened. "Hey, _that_ sounds pretty darn cool. You wanna show your old dad some of those fancy techniques of yours?"

Mebuki swatted at him playfully. "There will be no walking on walls in _this_ house, young lady. I just cleaned the walls this afternoon, and I do _not_ want footprints on the ceiling."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at that, and her parents joined in. It wasn't very funny, but she laughed until she cried.

Her parents might not be elite shinobi or clan heads- or heck, even shinobi at all- but that didn't matter to her. So what if her parents were civilians? They were the best mom and dad she could have ever asked for, and she wouldn't give them away for anything.

* * *

**A/N: Decided to make the 'interludes' into actual chapters. Chapters will now be shorter, but with (hopefully) more frequent updates.**

**I have my issues with Sakura's characterization in Road to Ninja. I kind of merged established information about her parents with my previous headcanon, which is why some things are dangerous.**

**Next chapter will, in contrast to this chapter, focus on Hinata. Also, Obito's issues with his chakra will also be explained.**

**Here's a question I would like to ask all you amazing readers - Should I have Jiraiya appear in this story or not? On one hand, he's Naruto's godfather and I have thought of a reason for his extremely early appearance in the fic. On the other hand, I don't want to have too many characters involved.**

**Sorry for the iffy quality of this chapter. I'm leaving for a conference tomorrow which will take up my whole weekend, and I didn't want to leave you guys to hang for another week.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Rating: **T

**Summary: **Hinata Hyuga was used to being ignored. [[Timeline changes regarding attempted kidnapping attempt from Kumo]]

* * *

"Halt," said Hiashi Hyuga. Then, "you're a disgrace".

Hinata bowed her head in shame, but she knew it was true. Obvious, even. She had known since the day her father no longer smiled as he watched her train, had known it when she - the clan _heiress_ - had been defeated by her cousin, Neji, who while slightly older than her, was also a member of the Branch House, had known it when her father had stopped talking to her unless absolutely necessary.

She blinked back the tears - no need for her father to think she was weaker than he already did - and bowed, trying her best not to let her shaking be too obvious. Hiashi Hyuga watched motionlessly, then made a slight incline of his head.

She left the platform quickly, feeling her father's gaze boring into her back.

* * *

Hinata liked her clan, for the most part.

She loved her mother, who was kind and gentle and to who she bore a great resemblance. Her mother, however, wasn't exactly a great shinobi. She had retired from the shinobi ranks as a chuunin and had never looked back.

Her little sister, Hanabi, who was only three... well, Hinata would be lying if she said that she didn't bear _any_ resentment against her. She did and felt horribly guilty about it, but she just couldn't help it. After all, Hanabi commanded more of her father's attention by doing nothing than Hinata did by trying. She knew that her father thought Hanabi to be a better clan heiress than Hinata would ever be.

Uncle Hizashi and Cousin Neji were both of the Branch House, which Hinata really didn't understand. All she knew that something horrible had been done to them so that they could be controlled by Main House. She didn't know them well, but they treated her kindly (albeit coldly) and didn't look down on her.

But her father, Hiashi Hyuga...

It was complicated, to say the least. On one hand, Hinata desperately wanted her father's approval, wanted him to acknowledge her and to feel proud of her. On the other, she was frightened of him. He was strong and confident and everything Hinata wanted to be as a shinobi, but... he was cold as well. He spoke no more than he needed to, and that wasn't often.

* * *

She had never been especially confident, and she had only gotten more and more timid as the years went on. Any fight she had had in her was demolished by her father's cutting words and hurtful remarks. And so, Hinata began to spend more and more of her time alone, often crying to herself.

Her classmates had picked up on her shyness and with the cruelty of young children, began to pick on her. She endured their torment quietly and did her best to give them no satisfaction, but they only continued in their taunts.

Until that day.

* * *

_"Hey! Get away from her!"_

* * *

Naruto Uzumaki was unlike anybody she knew.

She knew _of_ him - he was the prankster, the boisterous boy who shouted in class and always got reprimanded by the Academy teachers. Hinata wasn't blind. She could see the way the instructors treated the blonde. In fact, it seemed to her that most of the adults in the village treated Naruto with disdain, annoyance, and sometimes, outright hatred.

He was an outcast like her, but unlike Hinata, he refused to accept it. Naruto was loud and colorful and did everything he could to attract attention, while Hinata much preferred staying in her little corner and staying out of everyone's way.

In a way, she admired him. Sure, Naruto wasn't exactly smart and he always did badly in class, but there was a part of him that was inexplicably _powerful_. Maybe it was his will - if there was one thing Hinata was sure about her blonde classmate, it was that he never gave up. Or perhaps, his personality, which drew her to him like a magnet.

It was because of this that she found herself gazing at him both in class and out, going out of her way to follow Naruto to where ever he was heading.

But her true fascination with him started with that day, a year ago.

* * *

She had been walking home from the Academy when they came after her.

"Where you going, Hyuga? Off to cry again?" One jeered as she walked past.

Hinata hid her face in her jacket and continued walking.

"What, just because you belong to a big-shot clan, you think you're too good to speak to us?"

"...No," she managed, and quickened her step.

"What did you say? I couldn't hear you." Hinata could hear footsteps behind her. "Why don't you tell me to my _face_?" A hand grabbed on to her shoulder. She tensed at the touch-

"Hey! Get away from her!"

-but didn't get the chance to move before someone else had gotten rid of the hand for her.

Hinata whirled around and stared at the scene in front of her. An orange blur had tackled her tormentor to the ground and the two were wrestling, throwing punches at each other. She froze, unable to comprehend what was happening. It seemed at first that Naruto was winning - then the others joined in, and the odds were against him.

She hesitated. Should she help him? After all, Naruto was only getting beaten up now because he had intervened on her behalf... But her shyness won out, and Hinata fled, hiding behind an overturned wagon.

At last, the noices ceased and she peeked out cautiously. The three boys were getting up now, muttering angrily with each other. They peered around as if to look for her - she scrambled back into hiding with a squeak - and seeing nothing, ran off. Hinata noted with some satisfaction that they didn't get away scot-free. Two had bruises on their face, and the other was limping noticeably.

Hinata heard a groan from where Naruto had been left sprawled on the ground, and ran over.

The blonde looked bad. She winced at the bruises and black eye that had been left on Naruto's features. She moved to help him up, then hesitated and returned back to her original position - standing a foot away from where the blonde was lying, hands clutched to her chest.

Naruto looked up at her. "Are you okay?" He asked.

She didn't know what to say. He stared. "...Y-yes," she managed, and fell silent again, cursing her stutter.

He grinned at that - a bright grin that seemed to make the cuts and bruises on his face disappear.

"W-Why did you h-help me?" Hinata asked. She knew Naruto wasn't well-liked among his peers - the complete opposite, in fact - and he didn't even know her. Why would he be willing to get beaten up for some girl he had never talked to before?

He looked at her as if he didn't understand why she had asked him. "I'm gonna be Hokage someday," Naruto said, matter-of-factly, "and what kind of Hokage would I be if I let bullies get away with stuff like that?"

...He was telling the truth. Hinata stared at him with wide eyes. Nobody had ever done anything nice for her just to be nice before. Neji and Hizahi-san and all the other members of the branch family protected and respected her because of her being of the main family. The rest of her family either treated her with respect because she was family, or like her father, looked down upon her because of her lackluster abilities.

But Naruto helped her, had protected her, just because she was someone who needed help.

"Uh," he said. "Who _are_ you?"

At his question, Hinata froze with a terrified expression on her face, made a muffled squeak, then ran away as fast as she could.

Naruto blinked. "...What a weirdo," he said to himself.

* * *

She couldn't stop thinking about him.

It wasn't, like many of the other girls in her class, his looks that attracted her to him. It was the sheer confidence with which he spoke - a confidence that Hinata had never experienced herself.

"I'm gonna be Hokage someday," he had said with utmost certainty, as if he wasn't the pariah of the village and the deadlast of his class. Naruto wanted to be the strongest ninja in the village and the most trusted, the most beloved. It wasn't an easy thing to accomplish, especially considering his status in the village.

And yet, Hinata had believed him. For some reason, she just knew that one day, Naruto Uzumaki would become the Hokage of Konoha - be it the Godaime, or the Rokudaime, or even the Shichidaime.

That was what made her think. Naruto, though hated by the majority of the village, didn't give up on his dream of Hokage and still kept his head up everyday, unwilling to bend to the relentless abuse of his classmates and their parents. He didn't even have parents - Hinata saw him walking alone everyday as everyone else was greeted by loving mothers and fathers. For all she knew, he didn't have a single friend.

But that didn't bring him down, not a bit.

So what excuse did Hinata have for giving up? Her father saw her as a loser, a failure who didn't deserve the position of clan head. Her classmates insulted and degraded her. But she had people who loved her. She had the resources to succeed. Naruto didn't have that, and _he_ didn't give up.

Hinata clenched her fist tightly, a fire burning behind her eyes. She would follow Naruto's example and become strong. She would make her father proud and become worthy of the position of clan head. And this, she would never give up on.

* * *

She had been following him around since Naruto had saved her from the bullies when she was little, but never once had she mustered up the courage to actually talk to him. In doing so, Hinata had become a master of stealth - he had never caught her staring (and blushing) at him.

(Unbeknownst to Hinata, Naruto wasn't as oblivious as he looked. Due to not knowing her name, he had dubbed her, with his incredible naming skills, 'the weird stalker girl'. But maybe it's just as well she didn't know.)

It was from this questionable hobby from her that she had discovered Naruto's love for ramen, his birthday, and, to her great surprise, his older 'brother'.

It hadn't been hard for Hinata to find out about the latter - Naruto had, after all, shouted it out in class, quite literally.

* * *

"We will be holding parent conferences in the next few weeks," announced Mizuki-sensei, "so please sign up for a time and a date on this paper here. Make sure your parents can make it to the time chosen before you sign. Any questions?"

Hands were raised around the class.

"Yes, Ichiro-kun?"

The watery-eyed young boy stuttered as he talked. "W-what will you be talking to our parents about?"

"No need to look so worried. We will only be talking about behavior issues, not academics. That will be saved for another date."

Ichiro gulped. Hinata knew that he had failed the previous few tests in class, and felt a slight sympathy for him.

And so it went, with each of the students being called upon, until there was only one left.

"Naruto-kun," Mizuki-sensei said with a strange tone in his voice, "of course, due to your... situation, the parent conferences won't apply to you."

"Wait! You said that adult guardians can come if we don't have parents that will, right?"

"...Yes, I did say that." Mizuki-sensei raised an eyebrow. "Why, Naruto-kun, do you have a guardian who is willing to come?"

"Yeah, I guess. But what do you mean by adult?"

"You should know this," the instructor reprimanded, "village laws were the subject of the last test." Naruto flushed red; Hinata knew that he had done poorly on that particular test. "But I will repeat again. For civilians to qualify as an 'adult', they must be age eighteen or older. For shinobi, they must be ranked genin or higher to be considered an 'adult'."

Naruto brightened and a huge grin appeared on his face. "That means nii-san qualifies then!"

The classroom was silent. "Nii... san?" Mizuki-sensei repeated, a funny look on his face. "Ah, Naruto-kun, I wasn't aware that you had a... brother."

"I do now," the blonde replied cryptically.

"And how did you get this... brother of yours?"

"Oji-san, duh. But Obito-nii's the best nii-san one could ask for! He buys me ramen and he teaches me how to throw kunai and he turned Wolf-san's hair -"

"That's enough, Naruto-kun. So your brother - this Obito - he will be attending your conference?"

The blonde nodded excitedly. Hinata felt bad for him. She knew him well enough to know that he was so eager because of the sheer novelty of the fact. But she knew that Mizuki-sensei didn't like Naruto, and she was worried about what kind of things he would tell Naruto's new 'brother'.

"Ah. Well, I'll be sure to.. speak to him about you," said Mizuki-sensei, an odd glint in his eye.

Hinata first saw Naruto's brother when he came to pick Naruto up from school. A crowd of parents had gathered around them, and she had a sinking suspicion why. But they managed to break free, and she snuck a glance at this Obito as the two ran off.

He... wasn't what she expected. Hinata knew that he couldn't be that old because he was Naruto's 'brother', but even so, Obito was _young_. There was no way he could be out of his teens - in fact he looked like he had just reached them. He looked like some of the older Academy students who were ready to graduate and were thirteen, but he also wore a hitai-ate around his forehead.

Which was strange, considering that most shinobi became genin around that age, and Hinata had never seen Obito before in her life. That meant that he hadn't graduated from the Academy in the last few years. But... Naruto had said that he qualified as an adult, right? So he was either a genin who had been promoted by some other way, or a chuunin.

And his looks... Hinata knew that Obito probably didn't look a lot like Naruto, but the difference between two was like night and day. The former had black hair and eyes, the latter had blonde hair and blue eyes, both light. Even their face shape was different. The only similarity she could find between the two - after following the two around a bit - was in the way they laughed and talked.

In fact, Obito looked almost... Uchiha. Hinata's father had often talked to the head of the Uchiha Clan, before the massacre, and she had been left to play with the children of that clan. Obito looked like some of them.

But it couldn't be. The Uchiha were all dead, all gone at the hands of Sasuke's older brother. It made Hinata sick to realize that the kids she had played with all those years ago, the stern faced Clan Head and his kind wife... they had all been butchered in the span of a single night. But it had happened, and there was no way that Obito could be one of them.

* * *

One thing had lead to another, and that was how that fateful meeting from years ago had lead to Hinata hiding in the bushes and watching Naruto train with a blush on her face.

That is, until a hand grabbed her shoulder and yanked her out. Hinata eep'ed, then paled as she looked up into the face of a boy who looked a few years older than herself. A boy who happened, as Hinata realized with growing horror, to be Naruto Uzumaki's self-proclaimed older brother.

And just when she thought things couldn't possibly get any worse, she heard a shout. A loud, exuberant shout - and she knew that voice. Hinata's eyes grew wide as she saw her blonde classmate running toward them, followed by a pink-haired girl who sat a few rows in front of her in class.

"Obito-nii, what are you doing over - Hey!" Naruto pointed a finger at her, a look of shock on his face. "You're that weird girl who stares at me all the time!"

Great. Not only had she been exposed to her crush in one of the worst ways possible (in front of two other people too!), there was no way to get out of this situation without giving away some very embarassing information.

Confronted with the circumstances, Hinata did the only thing she could do. She fainted.

Obito gave Naruto a Look. "Great going, bro."

* * *

**A/N: Sorry, this chapter isn't very long, especially considering the wait involved. My excuse is sudden writer's block - my first one, actually. Good news is, the next chapter should be out soon.**

**So, timeline changes. As I said above, the attempted kidnapping of Hinata by Kumo hadn't happened yet. So her uncle is still alive and Neji doesn't hate her. Thanks to my readers, I've discovered her age to be 3 when the kidnap attempt occurred. So yeah, five years difference...**

**Since this fic is taking place in an parallel universe anyways, maybe brush that off as one of the differences? Anyways, I have plans for how that's going to go in the fic.**

**As usual, please review and - a question for the reviewers, so I can make you guys happy with the direction of the fic - would you guys like the Kakashi and Sasuke subplot in the background with small mentions in the main plot, or for interaction between the two to feature more prominently in the story? **

**Sasuke and Kakashi will be pretty major characters both ways; I just don't know whether or not I should write their "getting to know each other" parts into actual chapters.**

**Also~ 200th reviewer gets to request a ficlet from me! Should be around 1000 words - whether it's shorter or longer depends on the topic.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Rating: **K+

**Summary: **In which Obito gets reminded of certain things, gives away some things he shouldn't have, and trains a bunch of kids without his chakra.

* * *

"Hope you don't mind having a training partner tomorrow," Obito said, then shoved his spoon into his mouth. He chewed thoughtfully. Then, as if finally noticing Naruto's confused stare, he finished his phrase, "cuz you're getting one."

Naruto dropped his spoon, then stared at his brother, mouth open. "...It's not Sasuke, is it?" The boy whispered, voice full of dread.

"What? _No!_" He wrinkled his brows in confusion. Because seriously, _what_? What did his estranged cousin have to do with this? "...Why do you think it's Sasuke?"

"I don't know," said the blonde, now frowning. It was a strange expression to see on his normally cheerful face. "Y_ou're _the one who's obsessed with him."

His eyes widened in shock. _Obsessed-?_ "Hey" Obito yelped, "! I am _not_ obsessed with him - what the hell are you -"

Naruto scowled even more. He blinked. Oh. He had a feeling he knew _exactly_ what was going on... "You - You're not _jealous_, are you?"

The boy paled suddenly. "W-why would I be jealous of a jerk like Sasuke?" He defended, albeit a bit unconvincingly.

...Looks like he hit the mark. Obito grinned. Seriously? Who would have thunk it? "I can see right through you, kid."

He had his suspicions, but he supposed it was better to get it from the source. "But why are you jealous of him, Naruto?" Sure, there was the obvious - Sasuke was beloved, hailed as a genius by his peers, loved by the girls and admired by the guys - everything Naruto was not, and wasn't _that_ a familiar scenario. But that had never bothered Naruto before - at least, not to this extent - so... what was different about _this_ time?

"...Why do you care about him so much?" Naruto asked finally, staring at Obito with large blue eyes. The rest was unspoken, but obvious to both parties nonetheless. _What does _he_ have that I don't?_

Obito blinked, then sighed. "Oh, Naruto... Alright, I'll explain. And I promise, it has _nothing_ to do with you. Look... have you noticed that Sasuke and I look alike?"

The boy rolled his eyes. "Duh. It's pretty obvious. You have black hair like him and you kinda do look a _lot_ like him, but... Sasuke's family's all dead - right?"

"...Yes and no." Obito bit his lip. Should he tell him the cover story or the truth? On one hand, there was the security of the village to be considered, not to mention the inevitable questions that would arise... but on the other, this was his _brother_, blood or not. He settled for a mix of both. "Sasuke's my cousin. I wasn't in the village when... all the other Uchiha died, so I'm still alive."

Naruto's expression changed from shock at the initial revelation to something a bit harder to read. "...If he's your family, then why aren't you with _him_?" He spat.

"Well, he kinda hates me, for reasons I can't tell you right now -" Obito realized abruptly that was _not_ the right thing to say. Naruto's expression darkened even more.

"You're only sticking around because nobody better wants you there with them," Naruto said, voice dead. "I _knew _it was too good to be true - why would anyone wanna be my family if they had a choice?" His voice broke off suddenly into a dry sob.

"_Stop it!_" Obito exclaimed, then engulfed his brother into a hug. "You're getting the wrong idea. It's _nothing_ like that, alright? I'm freaking _lucky_ to have you as my brother and there's no way I would leave you now, Sasuke or not. Sasuke's family, but _you're_ family too. And I don't abandon family. I'm not obsessed with Sasuke, I just want to make sure he's doing alright. He's an orphan too." But Kakashi had been assigned to that department, making Obito somewhat unneeded. Not to mention that Sasuke was giving him some very unpleasant flashbacks to a certain arrogant silver haired prodigy.

"But he's your _cousin," _the boy argued.

"And you're my brother." Obito replied, voice matter of fact.

"It's not the same!" Naruto said mulishly. "Your mom and dad aren't my mom and dad - we're not even _related_, not like you and Sasuke -"

"Like that makes a difference! Blood is thicker than water, sure, but it isn't everything. Just because we aren't blood related doesn't mean you're my real brother, doesn't mean that I value Sasuke more than I value you." Obito scowled. "Anyways, my parents died before I actually got to know them. I was close enough to your parents that I saw them as mom and dad anyways, so -"

He paled. He... was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to say that. But then again, Obito always had a problem with saying more than he should have.

Naruto stared at him. Then slowly, he whispered, "you - you knew my mom and dad?"

Obito swore profusely - mentally, of course, he couldn't risk corrupting his baby brother! The Sandaime had been pretty adamant in this rule specifically - "Don't tell Naruto about his parents." But looking down into Naruto's hopeful, bright blue eyes, he couldn't help but think, _just a little won't hurt, right_? The kid already had to grow up all these years without knowing the slightest bit of information about his family - it wasn't the end of the world if he knew just a bit more, right?

...He had a feeling that certain other people wouldn't see it that way. But this was _his_ brother, _his_ responsibility.

"...I did," Obito said finally, and hoped that Naruto wouldn't do the math and asked him some incredibly awkward questions. Time travel did screw up a lot of things. "They were good people. The best." At least, to Obito, they were. He had never had much of a father figure in his life - and for that matter, any parent figure at all - and Minato-sensei and Kushina-kun were all he had. Not to imply that they were inferior in anyway - hell, they were probably some of the most precious people Obito had, if not _the_ most precious.

"What was my dad like? Was he a shinobi - was he _strong_? Was my mom pretty? Was she nice?" Obito would have swore that the kid was bipolar. In the span of a second, Naruto's overall mood had flipped from depression to exhilaration. Even when _he_ was younger, his mood swings weren't this huge. "Tell me everything!"

He hesitated for a moment, making sure whatever he said wouldn't give away details. There was probably a reason that the Sandaime didn't want Naruto to know about his father being the Yondaime and his mother being the previous Kyuubi jinchuriki. "Your dad was a shinobi. Yeah, he was strong -" He refrained from saying just _how_ strong. Obito had a feeling that Naruto wouldn't exactly keep quiet over his father being one of the most powerful shinobi in known history. "He was kind and understanding and he would have been so proud of you. And your mom - she was one of the most beautiful people I knew."

The position of most beautiful was, of course, claimed by a certain brunette with purple tattoos on her cheeks and a love for flowers.

Naruto seemed entranced. Obito continued, "she was a really powerful shinobi. I think she could have matched your dad in that aspect," Obito continued. "She loved ramen. I still don't know how she could eat fifty bowls of ramen at one sitting."

Oh shit, was the kid tearing up? He _was_. "I - I love ramen too!" Naruto wibbled. Obito patted his head awkwardly.

"...Yeah, you're a lot like your mom. Personality-wise, at least. And as you might have guessed, you two have the same tastes in food. But I think you take more after your dad in looks." Obito had a feeling that once the kid grew up a bit, he would uncomfortably like a younger version of his Sensei.

"But - who _were_ they?" Naruto demanded, a glint in his eyes. "Why haven't they come to get me yet?"

Obito paused. He knew for a fact that the kid had been told that his parents were dead. But again, he must have been told a lot false things about his parents too - nasty things, he guessed. Maybe Naruto hoped that his parents being dead was also a lie? "...I'm sorry, Naruto. Your parents are... gone. They died in the Kyuubi attack. They died protecting the village." Just... a lot more directly than was implied. You can't get more direct than "sealed the Kyuubi into you at the cost of their lives"._  
_

"...They died the day I was born," said Naruto with horrified realization. He bit his lip. "...Why. Why couldn't they have survived? We could have been so happy together." His eyes were shining with unshed tears.

Obito pulled him into a hug. "...I don't know, little bro." Actually, he did know - because a certain masked man who may or may not be Madara Uchiha had a vendetta against the village, and pulled Minato-sensei and Kushina-kun into it as well. If only the man not let the Fox out - well, life would be much different for one Naruto Uzumaki.

He felt a sudden rush of pure hatred for the masked man. Naruto could have been loved. He could have had parents, instead of a crappy older brother who had lie to him about such important htings.

But instead, Naruto Uzumaki was stuck in a village that hated him for something he couldn't help. He was alone -

No. He wasn't. Obito wouldn't _let_ him be alone. Minato-sensei and Kushina-kun might be gone, but Obito was determined to take care of Naruto in their stead. He held no pretense that he would do as good of a job that they would have done, if they had surprised - but he would do his best.

...But if he ever got his hands on the bastard behind all of his...

Obito scowled. So what if Madara Uchiha was a legendary shinobi with power beyond his wildest imagination? Obito had always been determined. Once he was started on something, he didn't give it up. Not ever. And now, he wanted to make sure that the masked man never hurt anyone ever again._  
_

Madara Uchiha better watch his back.

* * *

"Hey, Obito-nii," said Naruto, fidgeting in his new training gear. Obito wasn't going to let his little brother fight in a bright orange jumpsuit if he could help it, no way. "I just realized... you still haven't told me who my training partner is. It's not Sasuke. Who else can it be?"

Oh, right. Obito had spent the rest of the day trying to cheer Naruto up, which meant a trip to Ichiraku's, a few hours in the park, and a brief journey into a candy store, from which the boy had emerged almost completely covered in sugar. Needless to say, they hadn't gotten much done. "Her name's Sakura," he said. "I don't know if you know her, but she looked around your age, with pink hair."

Naruto's jaw dropped. "My training partner's _Sakura-chan_?"

"...You know her?" Obito quirked an eyebrow. Was that a blush? That _was_ a blush.

"Yes! No!" His face was crimson. "How do _you_ know Sakura-chan?"

Obito grinned slyly. Oh, this was too priceless. "Met her in the forest one day. What, she your classmate?" Yeah, a classmate for sure. Just like he and Rin were classmates...

"...Yeah. But... I don't want to hit Sakura-chan!"

He rolled his eyes. "Please. Like I'm going to make you two spar on the first day of training. You two should at least learn _some_ taijutsu before you can get there. Besides... she can take it. If she can hit you, then you can hit her. There's no such thing as chivalry in the world of shinobi." Shinobi who refused to fight enemy kunoichi because of a stupid reason like that usually ended up dead, very quickly.

But this was _interesting_. Sakura herself didn't seem to have _that_ much in common with Rin, to tell the truth - sure, they were kind and caring, but those were pretty broad traits. The pink haired girl was determined yet very unsure about herself. Rin, on the other hand, had always been quite self-confident from the first time Obito had met her, that first day of Academy.

Naruto definitely had some sort of crush on her. ...And from what Obito could tell, Sakura barely knew he existed.

Obito had experience - a _lot_ of experience - with situations like this... he had spent years building up courage to confess to a certain teammate, after all. It was his duty to help out those unfortunates stuck in his previous circumstances - and it was his kid brother too, which just strengthened his resolve.

* * *

Training... wasn't exactly what Sakura Haruno had expected. She didn't know _what_ she had expected, actually, but this definitely wasn't it.

"Alright. You two both have proper training gear, so that's good." Obito clapped his hands together with glee. "Let's get this started then."

"What kind of cool stuff are you gonna teach us this time, Obito-nii?" Naruto shouted, eyes wide with excitement. "Fireballs? The technique with the logs?" Obito didn't reply. The blonde faltered. "...Kunai? Shruiken?"

"Heh. This is your first training session, remember? We're going to start with the basics." He grinned. "Twenty-five laps around the field."

...Sakura's eye twitched. Sure, she saw the logic in that, but she really had been hoping for something a _bit _more exciting... Training to be a shinobi didn't necessarily bring an image of _running_ to mind.

Naruto seemed to feel the same. "Eh?" He yelped, "But running's boring, Obito-nii! At least teach us taijutsu or something."

The older boy frowned. "...Kid, running might be boring, but it might just save your life one day. Sometimes a shinobi has no option but to run away. Anyways, you two need to get in shape. Knowing how to do flashy techniques doesn't mean anything if you don't have the chakra coils to use them - not that flashy techniques aren't awesome. Besides, you're not going to last long as shinobi if you have to stop for breath every few minutes." He grinned. "So, run."

The blonde grumbled, but did as he was told. Reluctantly, Sakura followed him.

She had never been physically inclined. In school, Sakura had always been at the top of her class, but unlike some others, she didn't do so well on the training field. It was no surprise to her that she was already out of breathe by the fifth lap and practically gasping for air by the tenth. This... was harder than she thought. And yet, Naruto was still jogging in front of her at the same pace at which he started.

Sakura stared. Alright, so she wasn't exactly fit. The distance was probably a piece of cake to a trained shinobi. But still, Naruto's stamina was remarkable, at least to her. She slowed down slightly, took a deep breathe, and _ran_. So maybe there was no way she could catch up to Naruto. That didn't mean she wasn't going to run until she physically couldn't.

She had always wanted to prove herself, and now she had the opportunity to, she was going to. She had to! And so Sakura ran, face red and legs burning from the exertion.

But even sheer will can't change reality. On the twentieth lap, she was feeling woozy - it was a large field, alright? - and she had a feeling that she was going to faint if she didn't stop soon. And yet, Naruto was still running, looking barely winded. Damn.

Exhausted as she was, Sakura didn't notice the small rock jutting out of the ground in front of her foot. One misstep later, she found herself sprawled on the ground, face pressed uncomfortably close to the grass, and breath knocked out of her. She groaned, made an attempt to get up, and thought better of it. Maybe it would be best if she just laid there for a few minutes...

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted, sounding panicked, "a-are you okay? You're not dying are you?"

She moaned, then rolled over. "I'm fine, Naruto-kun."

"I need to get Obito-nii! Obito-nii, I think Sakura-chan's dying!" The blonde yelled. "Wait - Obito-nii? Where are you!"

Silence. Sakura brushed the sweat out of her eyes and got up gingerly. "Seriously, I'm alright." She patted the grass out of her clothing. "Wait, where is he?"

The field was empty. Sakura blinked. She swore Obito was standing right over there just a few moments ago...

Naruto blinked. "Sakura-chan... do you think Obito-nii was kidnapped?"

She shook her head. "I'm pretty sure your brother could handle himself..." But again, hadn't Obito told her that his chakra was messed up for some reason? She put the thought out of her head. "Let's look for him. He has to be around here somewhere."

They found him kneeling next to a bush near the edge of the field, grabbing at something inside. On closer look, it was... a girl?

Sakura stared. Wait, she knew this girl...

Naruto came jogging up. "Obito-nii!" He cried, "what are you doing over -" He stopped. "Hey! You're that weird girl who stares at me all the time!" Naruto pointed an accusing figure at the purple haired girl, who by now was looking quite faint.

Hinata Hyuga - for that was who she was - gave a muffled squeak and keeled over.

The trio stared for a while. Obito gave Naruto a look. "Great going, bro."

The blonde flushed red. "I didn't know she was going to faint!"

His brother rolled his eyes. "...You two know this girl?"

"She's a classmate," answered Sakura. "Her name's Hinata Hyuga."

"She's a total weirdo!" Naruto added, "She follows me around and stares at me, but whenever I try to talk to her, she squeaks and runs away! And - and she's always blushing too, maybe she has a disease or something."

Obito had an odd look on his face. "...Yeah, sounds like she has a disease alright." He smirked. "...She must have caught a love bug." This was said quietly, so only Sakura could hear.

Naruto blinked. "Wait, did you say something else?"

"...Nah, you were probably imagining it." Obito changed the subject. "So, we have an unconscious Hyuga on our hands. Any ideas?"

Sakura looked at Hinata closely. She had seen the girl in class, sitting by herself at lunch and perpetually hidden in the back row of the classroom. She never volunteered to answer questions, but gave the right answer whenever she was called on. Hinata never said anything other than strange little frightened sounds, and as far as Sakura knew, she didn't have any friends.

...And didn't _that_ situation sound a bit familiar. She made a decision.

"We should ask her to join in," said Sakura. "Maybe that's why she's hanging around." ...Not. It was obvious that Hinata was here for only one thing - well, obvious to everyone except for a certain blonde Uzumaki. But she needed an excuse, and here was one ready made for her.

Obito gave her a significant look, then grinned. "I think that's a good idea. Sakura-chan, wake her up."

* * *

Hinata opened her eyes, and saw pink.

"Eep," she said, eyes wide.

"Hi," said the girl as she beamed at her, "my name's Sakura. Sakura Haruno." Hinata stared at her blankly. "...I'm in your class."

Oh, right. She had seen Sakura before - it was hard _not_ to notice her, what with the bright pink hair. But what was she doing here? The last thing she remembered was Naruto-kun pointing at her and -

Oh. _Oh._ Hinata blushed fiercely. Great, she had made a complete fool of herself in front of her role model/crush/stalkee and his brother. But... what was this girl doing here with... with Naruto-kun? A horrified realization dawned on her. No... what if Naruto-kun had -

Her thoughts were interrupted by said pink haired girl. "You're Hinata Hyuga, right?"

She nodded dumbly.

"Well, we're wondering if you wanted to train with us." Seeing the look on Hinata's face, Sakura quickly backpedaled. "It's alright if you don't want to, I mean, I don't want to force you into anything -"

"No," said Hinata. "No," she said again, a bit more forcibly. "I-" She hesitated. It wasn't an easy decision. On one hand, she could get closer to Naruto-kun. On the other hand, did she really _want_ to get closer to him? Hinata always felt safer watching from a distance. But again, she had always wondered...

Sakura waited patiently. Hinata swallowed. "I would love to," she managed, then clapped her hands over her mouth, as if she couldn't believe she had just said so.

The other girl broke into a big grin. "Great! I won't have to be the only girl anymore." She pulled Hinata up, and began dragging her away. "Obito and Naruto-kun are training over there - I think they're actually starting on something other than running -"

Hinata allowed herself to be pulled. It was a different feeling to be included. Not bad, just _different. _For a moment, she wondered. How would it feel like to have friends, to really talk to people out of her family? Sure, Neji might be considered a friend - a very, very distant friend - and maybe some of the other clan kids her parents forced her into meeting. But this was not like any of that.

A small smile appeared on her face. Maybe... this was something she could get used to.


End file.
